by Kate Evans
Fire engulfed two commercial dump trucks last Wednesday night in Berkeley Springs. The cause of the fire is undetermined.
The 911 call came in to Morgan County 911 Dispatch Center on Wednesday, November 29 as a commercial vehicle fire on Mawani Village Lane just north of Caperton Furniture Works, said Berkeley Springs Volunteer Fire Company Sergeant Robert Frey. Frey was initially in command of the scene. He is also a Morgan County 911 dispatcher.
The call was dispatched at 6:15 p.m. Frey said when fire crews arrived, they found two dump trucks fully involved. The trucks were sitting around eight to 10 feet apart. They assume that one dump truck caught fire and then caught the other truck on fire. Nothing else was on fire except for the two trucks.
Frey said that the dump truck front tires exploded.
“Once they get really hot they make an explosion sound due to the heat,” Frey said of the tires.
Frey said firefighters had the fire under control within five minutes. The dump trucks belonged to Tree Works Land Development and were owned by Michael Keefer.
Frey said that the trucks are completely destroyed. The dump beds are a little burned, but the cabs and motor areas are completely burned up. Frey noted that the owner mentioned that one truck was having electrical problems.
Units that responded to the fire were Berkeley Springs, South Morgan and Hancock Volunteer Fire Companies. Reynolds Store Volunteer Fire Company was also dispatched but was stopped in route, he said. Units were on the scene for about an hour.
Frey said that law enforcement was going to contact the fire marshal. Morgan County Sheriff’s Deputy Bradley Knotts responded to the fire.
