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Firefighters with the Greenville Department of Public Safety respond to a fire that engulfed an orange 2011 Jeep Wrangler parked at the McDonalds located at 409 S. Maplewood St. in Greenville Thursday evening. No injuries were reported. — DN Photo | Cory Smith
GREENVILLE — A bystander’s keen eye, which spotted smoke coming from a parked Jeep, helped a woman safely escape her vehicle before it was engulfed in flames in the parking lot of McDonald’s Thursday evening.
At approximately 8:15 p.m., the Greenville Department of Public Safety was dispatched to the report of a vehicle fire at the McDonald’s located at 409 S. Maplewood St.
According to GDPS Sgt. and Fire Lt. Brandon Allen, what started as light smoke coming from the engine of the vehicle quickly escalated into a fully involved vehicle fire of an orange 2011 Jeep Wrangler.
“We were called to a possible vehicle fire after a witness saw smoke coming from under the vehicle,” he said. “It was unclear at first if it was in a parking spot or drive thru, but upon arrival we found it was in a parking spot, away from other exposures.
Greenville Department of Public Safety firefighter Paul Decess, left, and officer Josh Vandermeulen respond to a fire that engulfed an orange 2011 Jeep Wrangler parked at the McDonalds located at 409 S. Maplewood St. in Greenville Thursday evening. No injuries were reported. — DN Photo | Cory Smith
“When I arrived, there was some gray and brown smoke flowing from the bottom of the Jeep,” Allen continued. “Then all of a sudden, it quickly progressed to the engine compartment and heavy black smoke started. Not long after that, flames were coming through around the center console.”
Allen said the bystander who initially alerted the driver, who had parked to eat their meal from McDonald’s in her vehicle, also attempted to extinguish the fire with a fire extinguisher from the restaurant, but with the fire located within the engine, those efforts weren’t enough.
“There were no injuries thanks to him,” Allen said. “Thankfully the bystander — who we have not been able to identify — we believe he tried to hit it with a water extinguisher that he got from the restaurant until I told him to step back. He may have had some influence in knocking the fire down a little bit.”
Allen also attempted to extinguish the fire with a chemical fire extinguisher, but, unable to access the engine until more personnel arrived at the scene, he couldn’t extinguish the blaze completely.
Once one of the department’s engines arrived at the scene, Allen said about 250 gallons of water combined with foam were used to quickly extinguish the fire.
Greenville Department of Public Safety Officer Josh Vandermeulen, left, and firefighter Paul Decess respond to a fire that engulfed an orange 2011 Jeep Wrangler parked at the McDonalds located at 409 S. Maplewood St. in Greenville Thursday evening. No injuries were reported. — DN Photo | Cory Smith
“We didn’t need to use a whole lot of water,” he said. “Considering how fast it took off, it was actually a pretty good knockdown.”
Allen said he called for a full department response after arriving at the scene.
“Initially we were going to handle it with station duty, but as soon as I pulled up and saw what we had, I had central dispatch tone it out,” he said. “But at least the vehicle was away from the building. Had it been close to the building, this would have been a different situation.”
Allen said the cause of the fire remains under investigation.
“The owner said she had been off roading recently, and there may have been some hay stuck under the vehicle,” he said. “Especially if it’s stuck around a hot component, the exhaust manifold before the muffler, that could be a possible cause. But we’re still trying to figure it out. Right now one of our fire investigators is here and has taken a look at it. We’ll be passing it along to one of our senior fire investigators.”
Allen said the vehicle is potentially a total loss, noting the owner had the minimum amount of coverage on the Jeep — personal liability and property damage, or PLPD.
Montcalm County EMS assisted at the scene.
