The Festus Fire Department responded to a car fire Wednesday evening (Jan. 15) in which the driver first noticed smoke billowing from her engine while she was waiting in the St. Louis Bread Co.'s drive-through lane.
Fire Chief Chuck Boyer said his department received a call on the fire about 6:30 p.m. and arrived at the restaurant, 1075 West Gannon Drive, in six minutes to find a 2003 Pontiac Grand Prix flaming at the hood.
“The driver (from Festus) stated she was going through the drive-through when she saw smoke coming from the car and got out of line to pull into a parking space,” Boyer said. “When we arrived the engine was fully (aflame). Within 10 minutes, we basically had it (the fire) out.”
Boyer said the driver pulled into a space away from other vehicles and the fire was confined to the Grand Prix. The driver escaped the vehicle uninjured, he said.
He said his department did not determine a cause for the fire and would not pursue an investigation.
“The cause of car fires are very hard to determine,” Boyer said. “Unless it’s suspicious, we usually turn it over to the insurance company to investigate. We were able to confine the fire to the engine compartment. The engine is definitely totaled. It will be up to the insurance company to decide if the car is totaled.”
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