Danger averted at Cobaw

A truck on fire at Cobaw on Monday.

 A firefighter with breathing apparatis climbs the truck.

Angela Crawford

The quick action of a passer-by prevented a truck fire at Cobaw on Monday from developing into a potentially dangerous incident. Fire brigades from Newham, Lancefield and Kerrie were called to the scene on Three Chain Road at about 4.15pm. 

It is believed that a tyre on the tip trailer of the earth-moving truck had either begun to shed or had blown out and the rear wheels had caught fire.

The driver quickly stopped, disconnected the truck from the trailer and moved to safety, before calling for help. By the time brigades arrived, a road maintenance water truck had arrived, backed up to the trailer and was spraying water onto the flames. The fire was not extinguished but was largely contained. Some of the tyres had burnt and blown out and had melted a hole in the bottom of the aluminium trailer, causing a load of gravel to spill out. A brigade member who is also a mechanic assisted the truck driver with repair required to reattach the half-burnt trailer and drag it out of the way. Shire road maintenance staff graded the gravel off the road.

Newham brigade captain, David Bachelor, commended the action of the passing truck driver in spraying the truck.

"It made the job a whole lot easier and saved the aluminium from burning and melting, which could have been dangerous," he said.