Massive flames engulfed the front of a truck and forced the closure of a busy East Vancouver street Friday morning.
Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) Ass. Chief of Operations Brad Hesse told V.I.A that the department received a call around 8:40 a.m. about a large vehicle on fire on Hastings Street near Victoria Drive.
VFRS sent 12 crew members and three fire apparatus to the scene. On arrival, they saw the front of a large flatbed truck was fully engulfed in flames.
Crews were able to knock the fire down fairly quickly and there were no injuries.
"The driver doesn't know how this happened. The truck's cab started to fill with smoke so he pulled over and got out right away," Hesse explained.
The hazmat team was called in because the truck's fuel tank ruptured, draining a large amount of fuel onto Hastings Street.
A portion of Hastings Street is blocked to traffic heading eastbound near Victoria; traffic is also backed up for a few blocks heading west.
The truck fire happened across the street from the site of the former Value Village which was destroyed by a massive blaze in June 2022.
