A protester set himself on fire outside Trump International Hotel in Washington DC on Tuesday.

The 45-year-old man, who has not yet been identified, said the act was in protest of the President-elect's looming inauguration.

Witnesses described how he yelled 'Trump' several times as 'flames ran up his back' before lying down in the street.

He suffered non-life-threatening burns and was taken to hospital shortly after the incident at around 9.30pm.

A Washington DC Police source told DailyMail.com he was not arrested.

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A man set himself on fire in protest outside Trump International Hotel in Washington D.C. on Tuesday night. His clothes remained ablaze in the middle of the road afterwards

The man said he was from California and that he was acting in protest against Trump

#BREAKING: Man lights fire near #TrumpInternationalHotel. Employees call police. Man told me he's from CA & protesting #TrumpInauguration pic.twitter.com/noUwttKRL5 — Shomari Stone (@shomaristone) January 18, 2017

In a brief interview with NBC at the scene, he said: 'I tried to light myself on fire as an act of protest.

'(I'm protesting) the fact that we've elected somebody who is completely incapable of respecting the Constitution of the United States.'

The man, who said he was from California, suffered third-degree burns on 10 percent of his body, according to the Washington Post.

He had used a lighter and accelerant to start the fire.

Authorities said they were called to the hotel after receiving a report of a person 'in distress'.

A bypasser said it was not initially clear what the man was protesting when he set fire to items of clothing in the street outside the hotel.

'He set himself on fire and as flames ran up his back he yelled Trump several times then lay down in the street.

Fire crews and an ambulance was called to the hotel shortly after 9.30pm to deal with the incident

(He) then walked over to the police/security,' Michael Shoag, who arrived at the hotel after the man set himself on fire, said.

While the man appeared to have suffered burns to his back, he was able to walk.

Trump International Hotel is on the parade route that the president-elect will travel during the inauguration on Friday as he makes his way to the White House.

Anti-Trump protesters have been flocking to Washington DC this week ahead of the event.

At least 26 protest groups have been granted permits, which is more than four times the average for past inaugurations, according to USA Today.

Approximately 400,000 protesters are anticipated in DC over the weekend, with more than half expected to walk on Saturday in the Women's March on Washington.

They also inundated Ivanka Trump's Manhattan home on Tuesday, carrying moving boxes plastered with protest slogans to mock the businesswoman's move to Washington.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Tuesday he would also join demonstrators at a protest outside the family's Manhattan hotel on the eve of the inauguration.

'I'm rallying at Trump Int’l Hotel at 6PM on January 19 because our next president needs to hear from all NYers before he takes office. Join us,' the mayor tweeted.