Pickup engulfs in flames

GF man escapes injury

By Kyle Johnson

Herald Staff Writer

Herald photo by Jay Pickthorn

Tim Brooks (left) and Jeff Boushee (right) of the East Grand Forks Fire Department hose down a 1984 Chevy pickup driven by Dennis Larsen on Polk County Road 19 on Saturday.

A Grand Forks man escaped injury when the pickup truck he was driving engulfed in flames Saturday evening.

Dennis Larsen was driving west on Polk County Road 19 when the 1984 Chevrolet pickup made a "popping noise" at about 6:45 p.m. The vehicle soon began smoking, and Larsen pulled to the side of the road eight miles east of East Grand Forks.

"I pulled over to the side of the road, and there it goes," Larsen said. "And I had just filled it up with gas."

Larsen collected a few belongings and climbed out of the vehicle, just before flames crept past the hood.

The cause of the fire was believed to be a cracked fuel line, something responsible for 80 percent of car fires, Polk County Deputy Sheriff Mark Johnson said.

Leon Newton, a passerby, pulled over to help and tried to stop the fire with a fire extinguisher in his vehicle. It was too late, however, and the entire vehicle was in flames within minutes.

No flammable portion of the vehicle was left unscathed by the time trucks from the East Grand Forks Fire Department arrived at the scene.

The vehicle, a C & R Laundry plow truck used to clear parking lots in the winter, had not had engine problems in the past, Larsen said.

Larsen was calm immediately after the incident.

"I used to be in the wrecker business, so I've seen a lot of this stuff before," he explained. "But it's never happened to me before."

Johnson said similar fires occur several times a year in the region. He said people should have their fuel lines checked more often to prevent these cases from happening.

He also said that people should go far away from a burning vehicle, as tires and engine components can cause big explosions when they burn.

"I wouldn't advise trying to put the fire out yourself, either," he said. "That's what insurance is for."