Pickup complete loss after being engulfed in flames in Grant

GRANT, Neb. -- Authorities in the Midplains of Nebraska were tasked with putting out a flame engulfed pickup on Tuesday. 

The Grant Volunteer Fire Department said a neighboring farmer helped prevent the loss of farmstead machinery shed/barn.

The Department said they were dispatched to a pickup fire in a building 11.5 miles north and 1 mile west of Grant around 5:15 p.m. 

Grant Fire Chief Donald Softley reported that he immediately requested mutual aid from Ogallala Fire Department for a pumper and a tanker, as well as a tanker from the Madrid Fire Department because of the extreme cold temperatures. He also said that the county roads were drifting across the road way with a couple of feet of snow. 

GVFD responded to the fire with a command vehicle, pumper, tanker, and an ambulance from Perkins County Ambulance. 

When crews arrived, Softley said he could see a pickup engulfed in flames and had been moved away from the barn. 

It was reported that the barn contained several tons of hay, coming to rest in an area of snow by the neighboring farmer who pulled the vehicle away from the structure. 

According to GVFD, flames were quickly extinguished and the responding mutual aid departments were able to return to their stations. 

The pickup, a 1983 Chevrolet K10, was determined to be a total loss. 

The Fire Department said the owner/operator reported difficulty starting the vehicle due to the extreme cold causing the vehicle to be flooded. 

GVFD said the owner then reported that the vehicle was idling in a rough fashion. 

The cause of the fire appeared to be leaking gasoline in the engine compartment, according to Grant Volunteer Fire Department.