Man working on truck sparks carport blaze
WEST LIBERTY — A man welding his pickup truck Thursday afternoon started a fire that burned down a carport.
The carport, which had wooden posts and a metal roof, is at 165 Church Road where a mobile home burned down in March. Though there is still a wooden frame from the trailer, the landlord plans to tear it down and bring in a new home, tenant Eric Neely said.
Firefighters had the fire under control in about five minutes, according to James Peters, assistant chief with the Slippery Rock Volunteer Fire Department.
Several trees and the remains of the trailer were scorched, but the damage from the fire was otherwise contained to the contents of the carport.
Neely was the only one at the property and said he quickly ran to safety when he realized the structure was on fire.
He was doing repairs to his Ford F-150 with an electric welding tool which was powered by a generator.
“I was on my last weld, and I smelled something burning. I looked up and the whole cabin was involved. Those inside motor parts go up quick,” he said.
The truck was destroyed by the fire along with Neely's toolbox, two air compressors, his generator and a golf cart.
The air tanks and the truck's gas tank did not explode, he said.
The fire in March started in a shed and spread to the rest of the house. Neely, his fiancee and her two children have been staying with family since then.
Peters said the cause of Thursday's fire is likely accidental, but state fire marshal Duwayne Baird was called to investigate.
