On September 21st, I was on my way home from work at the golf course, and as I rounded the bend on westbound I-44 approaching the straight stretch that runs along the old St Clair Airport, I spotted a car on fire, on the shoulder of eastbound 44. It looked like a gray colored Pontiac and heavy flames were rolling out of the passenger cabin of the car.

Despite heavy westbound traffic behind me, I pulled over to the shoulder and called 911…which rang three times and then routed me to the non-emergency number of Franklin County Sheriffs Office, a number I know well…never had that happen before…a radio operator answered the phone and I told her what was going on, described the car…no I didn`t see anyone around the car or inside the car, and she then told me St Clair Fire Department had been dispatched and disconnected the call…I imagine they were getting multiple calls on it and had limited call takers or dispatchers on duty to answer the incoming calls. No worries, help was rolling so I took a few photos…I had to shoot fast due to the heavy traffic passing me, insuring that I got a few good shots…I decided to stay inside my truck and shoot from there…

…two shots later, the car exploded and I was able to capture it because I was shooting non-stop….

…luckily no one was passing by when it exploded and St Clair wasn`t up on it with their firefighters, either…

A few minutes later, I heard St Clair Fire Department responding and soon they were pulling up, not sure if they saw the explosion as they approached or not…

Fires 2019-0921 EB 44 241.6 MM St Clair Car Fire With Explosion

…but they did seem to approach with caution, so it`s quite possible they did see it. At any rate, they put a quick knockdown on the fire after a second explosion occurred as they were walking up…between the next two photos you can tell, but they wisely moved off into the grass off the shoulder and made their initial attack from there…

…and just as they were making progress on their attack from the grassy area, the second firefighter on the hoseline, had trouble with his airpack and had to stop and make some changes before they could advance…

and by doing so, the nozzleman was able to knock down the heavy fire inside the cabin by focusing on spraying water through the burned out back windshield, maintaining a safe distance from the car…

Job Well Done, St Clair Fire District !!