The Invisible Man recounts walking out in public after setting the house on fire:

He stumbled and struggled to avoid collisions with pedestrians. He jumped in a cab before trying to continue on foot, but a dog smelled him and nearly gave him away. Later, children noticed the footprints he left in the mud and they showed the adults. A group of people then began following the mysterious footprints. He eventually outpaced them, and stopped to look back at the black smoke of the house fire.

The Invisible Man continues telling Kemp of his journey:

He sought supplies at a large department store called Omniums. He snuck into a pile of blankets and felt happiness for the first time since becoming invisible. Asleep, however, he had a nightmare about being accidentally pushed into a coffin and buried alive because no one could see him. When he awoke, he took clothes from the store—but, fully dressed, he was now visible to the policemen who pursued him through the store. He desperately needed the clothing to survive the snow, but he now had to undress to maintain invisibility. Unable to figure a way to abscond with his “plunder” (102), he left empty-handed.