Wow. 30 minute Vanagon fire video...

[jimf909]

Fire starts at about 2:00 minutes, propane blows at 13:30 (much louder than when the tires pffft although there are several bursts and pfffts throughout) ??? fire truck arrives at 16:00 minutes...

What could have been done to stop this?

I’ve tried to put out an engine fire in a Rabbit with my Vanagon’s fire extinguisher and I just slowed it for less than a minute. A bigger extinguisher and an open hood may have helped but I wasn’t going to open the hood on a stranger’s burning junker and I didn’t have a bigger fire extinguisher so it cooked.

What here?


Link

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- Jim

[IdahoDoug]

Actually, a pretty good and fast response with the extinguisher. But it looks like a fuel fire with fuel dripping down on a recently parked vehicle. So the solution would have been a garden hose to spray up into the engine and cool it below the fuel ignition temp? Lots of cooling water up like he started spraying with the extinguisher.

Edit: Interesting how the crew puts a lot of foam into the grille and interior at the front as if they don't realize the engine is at the rear. It made me wonder if there's a future way for firefighters to come upon a scene with a vehicle and have an instant data base for vehicle recognition and instant knowledge where the fuel tank, battery, etc is in real time as they walk up to it.
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1987 2WD Wolfsburg Vanagon Weekender "Mango", two fully locked 80 Series LandCruisers. 2017 Subaru Outback boxer. 1990 Audi 90 Quattro 20V with rear locking differential, 1990 burgundy parts Vanagon. 1984 Porsche 944, 1988 Toyota Supra 5 speed targa, 2002 BMW 325iX, 1982 Toyota Sunrader

[jimf909]

It’s amazing how the 3”??? fire hose of water calms the fire once the FD deployed.
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- Jim

[newerwesty1987]

"Attack lines" like that are around 1.75" hoses in the US and can still flow very high GPM's and pressure, depending on the pump settings. The big attack lines, often used by two men sitting down to hold it, with very high-flow water rates/GPMs, are only around 2.5" believe it or not.

The owner could have put it out or kept it down with a decent garden hose. Too bad there wasn't one near by or maybe he was too scared to try, which is very often the case. There is no need to be scared! Attack it till its dead. Nothing is going to explode enough to hurt you, short of maybe a propane tank but even those usually just rupture and throw a flame out, rather than explode.

The little extinguisher was applied fairly well for a laymen but the fuel was too saturated up in the cavities of the engine compartment to be put out fully.

I can tell that Fire Dept. is rural and not very experienced. Those guys were very skittish in how they attacked it, and not very well trained. I'd be yelling their ears off if I was in charge (something I used to do often!). The foam was not needed either; a good example of using something just because you have it, or maybe the LT/Captain wanted to train some rookies on it.

Lesson is: install new fuel lines and buy the big metal-nozzle extinguishers when you see them on sale!

[?Waldo?]

Just one of the other reasons I prefer diesels.

[Zeitgeist 13]

Just one word: Diesel



Link

[levi]

My heart goes out to these folks.

Hard to tell for sure, but it kinda looks like both of them were spraying the extinguishers on the ground.

At 5:57 is that the starter to the van that has been tripped?

Did the old rabbits have magnesium cases?
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but till I do I won't be hangin round.
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https://youtu.be/cSrL0BXsO40

[tjet]

If you watch at 26:15-30, the fire flares up after they hit it with water.

It must be the magnesium bellhousing igniting. They are feeding a Class D fire O2 at that point.

Also, the start of the fire looks like something dropped. Maybe the deck lid insulation?

[?Waldo?]

[levi]

[Steve M.]

Gas was the fuel for the fire, but what was the source of ignition?

Assuming - they just got into it hence the engine was cold or warm and not hot enough to ignite gasoline.

The logic I'm coming up with is a fuel line burst and sprayed fuel at what - the alternator's open design where it could spark? Or another wire that was in poor condition and the liquid gas shorted it causing a spark?
Or the fuel was dripping and puddled giving a nice pocket of vapor. You hopefully would notice the smell.

That it was gas is evident from it dripping down under the engine.
Question: Did he turn off the ignition which is also the fuel pump?

Notice from the external signs that it was on fire to the camera how much time before the occupants realized it was a fire.

Question: What are the first signs to the driver that there is a fire?
Loss of power from the engine not getting fuel or your mirrors?

Question: What would have slowed the spread of the fire?
- Metal engine hatch.
- fire retardant barrier on the bottom side of the engine hatch?
http://www.americanfiresleeve.com/high-temperature...oated.html
-Boundry Layer Cooling- in this case only because it was right there in the driveway and there was a garden hose - Spraying the water into the rear from the open sliding door would have bought more time if it was started and not stopped.
- Closing all the doors to prevent air getting in there. When the rear glass popped you could see what effect the ventilation had as the flames instantly got larger above the engine

Note that I did not day Blazecut. Even though I have 2 of them under my engine hatch & just bumped the thread. I doubt they will stop a fire. The reason why is that it was created for the air cooled engine compartment which is almost air-tight. The Vanagon is hardly air-tight and I think it is going to vent away before it puts a fire out. My opinion anyway.

What would have helped the most maybe would have been recent training in fighting a fire and practicing it on your vehicle and your house as well. What is your plan of action in both cases?
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[dabaron]

it appeared that the garden hose simply spread the burning fuel and made things worse. ABC is a must.

Amazon Prime Day purchase made.
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1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[the joker]

blaze cut and 2 ext would have maybe saved that westy,

[Steve M.]

[dobryan]

[dhaavers]

Heartbreaking to watch, yet impossible to look away...

Ignition source? Possibly fuel pressure regulator failure, spraying directly on distributor...???

My personal fire drill involves multiple halotron extinguishers with me laying on the ground
spraying upwards into engine bay. I'd not touch license plate, hatch or engine cover at all as
doing so takes time away from actual extinguishing and possibly adding oxygen to an otherwise
fairly well confined space, while also adding considerable personal risk. Imagine popping open
the engine cover, only to have it followed by a flash of flame angled directly at your face and
entire upper body...??? No, thanks...

- Dave

Be careful out there...
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[Abscate]

Heartbreaking loss.

Please don’t fight fires without training.

I think the crew correctly assessed there was no more property at risk and that the Vanagon was already a total loss, ergo the ‘ casual’ pace.

Neither a blazecut nor extinguishers will fight a gasoline fed fire at that stage unless you are on in the first few seconds.

Just for laughs. Boat fire drill.

Muster all hands on bow. Buddy up, abandon ship.

Boats are constructed of approximately 1000 gallons of gasoline that makes cyanide when it burns.
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.ssS!

[DanHoug]

good points about not opening the hatch nor license door... which makes me wonder if a strategically placed, trimmed out hole in the rear valance panel for the hose nozzle of a fire extinguisher might be a good idea to get retardant flooding the engine bay, especially on top. might save lying on the ground trying to spray up into the engine.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[Abscate]

Please think through the idea of rolling under with vice grips to clamp a fuel line and watch that video.

I think all the effort of access ports and extinguishers...can be better spent with prevention, we all know how.
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.ssS!

[shagginwagon83]

So the fire was fed through the return line? Don't people put a valve/check inline so this doesn't happen? I might need to do that...
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Brandon
"Jo Ann" - '83.5 Westfalia EJ22e w/Peloquin
Instagram @joannthevan