The Hurricane Valley Fire District and Utah Department of Transportation Incident Management Team responded to a fire on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
WASHINGTON COUNTY — A couple escaped injury Thursday afternoon while driving north on Interstate 15 when the transmission on their truck suddenly blew out, sending shattered metal scraps and parts flying.
Just before 5 p.m., officers and emergency personnel were dispatched to a reported truck fire on Interstate 15 northbound just south of Exit 22 near Leeds.
Upon arrival officers found a white Dodge dually pickup truck towing a long, flatbed trailer stopped on the right hand shoulder of the Interstate, Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Mike Murphy said.
Approximately 200 yards south of where the truck stopped, a small brush fire was discovered off to the right-hand side of the highway, Murphy said.
Firefighters were able to extinguish the brush fire quickly, and continued dousing the area with water for some time in case any areas were still smoldering.
Murphy interviewed the couple, who told the trooper they heard a loud crash and felt a jolt, as if something had broken off their truck as they were driving uphill.
The man driving immediately pulled the truck over and quickly realized the transmission had blown while the truck was moving, sending spinning machine parts out of the fractured transmission and directly into the brush on the side of the Interstate.
When they saw the brush fire, that’s when they called for help, the man said.
The couple was hauling parts up to Salt Lake City, a route they drive weekly, the woman told St. George News.
No injuries were reported with the incident and the truck was towed.
Traffic was disrupted temporarily while emergency responders tended to the scene and extinguished the fire.
The Utah Highway Patrol, Hurricane Valley Fire District and Utah Department of Transportation Incident Management Team responded.
This report is based on preliminary information provided by law enforcement or other emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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A white Dodge pickup truck pulling a flatbed trailer (shown here behind the first truck in the front) loses its transmission on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
It's a long way from where a blown transmission started a fire to where the truck is stopped alongside Interstate 15 Thursday, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
Hurricane Valley Fire District and Utah Department of Transportation Incident Management Team responded to a fire on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
Hurricane Valley Fire District and Utah Department of Transportation Incident Management Team responded to a fire on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
View to the north from the location of a brush fire to a disabled truck that started the small blaze on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
A fire began on the side of Interstate 15 after a truck's transmission blew while driving on Interstate 15, Washington County, Utah, July 14, 2016 | Photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cody Blowers was raised in South San Francisco, California. A 2013 graduate of Colorado Technical University, Cody earned her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice with a minor in paralegal studies. Through the course of her academic studies she discovered that writing is her true passion, and she is committed to providing credible, integrated news coverage. Cody joined St. George News in 2015, and when she’s not busy chasing the news, she can generally be found chasing her young granddaughter, Kali.
“The couple was hauling parts up……..” Please, please find a proof reader soon!