The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming

A pop and a whoosh

A commercial Ford F450 hauling ground sheeting to the oil fields in North Dakota burned to the ground last Thursday morning on Interstate 90 eastbound at approximately mile marker 171.

Moorcroft volunteer firefighter Jeff Holberg, who was among the first responders, said that the driver started in Gillette earlier in the morning and stopped in Moorcroft for fuel; after traveling another 13 miles, he heard a "pop" under the hood and, by the time he pulled the vehicle over into the nearby parking turnout, he had enough time to escape the truck before "whoosh".

"We obviously didn't make it here in time to save the truck," he said dryly as he gestured to what remained of the vehicle.

Moorcroft, Pine Haven, Sundance and the county rural fire departments responded and, while the vehicle could not be saved, Holberg reported that within 30 minutes of arriving on scene, the fire was out without injury.