Barstow, California -- A man who told fire officials that he was using his motorhome as an ersatz moving van watched as his motohome and personal possessions went up in smoke on Monday the 19th of August.
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| Barstow Fire Protection District |
Fire officials from the Barstow Fire Protection District told RV Travel that the motorhome's owner said he was having trouble with his transmission. Apparently the transmission was slipping, and the heat produced by the malfunction caused a fire under the rig. Unfortunately, the Class C motorhome's engine cowling wasn't in place, allowing flames from the fire to quickly infiltrate the rig's interior.
Add the full "load" belongings to flames, and the eight minute response time of a fire department already beleaguered with brush fire calls, and the end result was total destruction of the motorhome and contents.
The motorhome fire was so high and intense that overhead power lines also caught fire, adding to the difficulty of the situation. Barstow's Main Street was closed for nearly 30 minutes while firefighters knocked the flames down, and one lane of the street stayed shut for another 45 minutes while power company crews replaced the smoked wires.
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