DERRY, N.H. (WHDH) - A car burst into flames at a gas station in Derry, New Hampshire Wednesday morning, burning it down to its frame and sending plumes of smoke into the air, video captured by witnesses shows.
Firefighters were called to the BP gas station at the Derry Rotary at approximately 8 a.m. Derry Fire Battalion Chief Bill Gillis said crews worked quickly so the fire didn’t spread to any gasoline in the area.
“It was fully involved when we arrived,” Gillis said. “With the gasoline close by, as well as some of the flammable liquids that are in the gas station, and the fuel load, the fire load there can be kind of dangerous and could quickly cause fire spread.”
Sam Patel owns the Mobil gas station across the street, and said one of his employees captured a video of the growing flames.
“I’m glad they didn’t blow up the whole gas station because it’s gas, it can catch it right away,” Patel said. “It’s big damage. Yeah, it’s a lot of money to fix all those problems.”
Gillis said the fire was contained within minutes, but a vending machine outside of the Auto Service Center was melted, some pavement was charred, and glass in the lobby was fractured.
“It actually melted, or broke all the glass, and got into the soffit and almost inside the building, but we were luckily able to keep it out of the building itself,” Gillis said.
The Derry Fire Department said had been having issues with the car, and the cause of the fire was deemed accidental.
“They were having mechanical problems with the vehicle, pulled up next to the gas station, and that’s when it caught fire,” Gillis said.
No one was hurt.
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