A late-model car was destroyed by flames in the driveway of a Shuniah home early this morning, but the situation could have been much worse, said Fire Chief Blair Arthur.
A homeowner in the 700 block of Grann Drive called in the alarm shortly after midnight after seeing the car in flames – adjacent to the family’s lakefront home. He managed to rouse a neighbour and with a truck and chain they were able to drag the burning vehicle away from the home.
Thirteen firefighters from all 3 Shuniah fire halls responded with six vehicles and three members of the Pass Lake Volunteer Fire Department came to offer assistance with their pumper truck.
The first Shuniah vehicle on the scene, Rapid Attack 52, knocked the flames down with compressed air foam fired remotely from a bumper-mounted nozzle. Firefighters in the next arriving vehicle donned breathing apparatuses and quickly extinguished the fire in frigid weather.
The fire is believed to have been caused by a faulty block heater wiring connection being used to warm the car.
Chief Arthur said that cold weather extremes are a severe test of equipment and firefighters who then had to drain and repack frozen hoses and fill trucks with icy fittings.
All trucks were back in service at 4:30 a.m. today.