Commercial van burns in Dudley

Particulars:   Just before noon on Friday September 14^th, Dudley firefighters were alerted to a reported vehicle fire at the intersection of Corbin and Hayden Pond Roads.  As Dudley jakes neared the scene in Engine 3, they could tell by the column of black smoke against the bright blue sky that they’d be going to work when they arrived.

As firefighters arrived on scene, they found a Chevrolet commercial van in the middle of Corbin Road burning furiously.  The van was owned and operated by a local HVAC company.  The driver stated that he was returning home to retrieve some paperwork when he noticed smoke coming from under the hood of his van.  He stopped to take a look, popped the hood, and found the fire in the engine compartment.

The driver and his helper immediately began removing tools and equipment from the cargo area of the van, and were able to almost completely empty the van before firefighters arrived.  Neither the driver nor his helper was injured.

The fire proved to be quite stubborn, as firefighters attempted to douse the intense flames.  Dudley jakes moved in on the well involved cab of the van only to find as they pour water on the flames, the fire intensified and “spat” at them.  The cause for this was burning combustible metals, which react to water when they are burning.  The extreme heat given off by the burning metals break down the water to its raw elements, hydrogen (a highly flammable gas) and oxygen (which intensifies a fire).  This causes the fire to burn white hot and small explosions spit off numerous bits of molten metal in all directions.  The conditions are very hazardous to firefighters and by standers.  In the end, firefighters shoveled dirt and sand onto the stubborn flames in the cab to smother them.  They were then able to completely extinguish the remaining fire.

The road was closed for about an hour while firefighters worked the fire and the burned hulk was removed from the scene.  There were no injuries reported.  The cause of the fire was apparently mechanical in nature, and has not been deemed suspicious by the Dudley FD.

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