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Lake Country firefighters in right place at right time

Smoking vehicle on the side of the road lucky training was underway nearby
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The Lake Country Fire Department stopped training when firefighters saw a smoking car near Oceola and Okanagan Centre roads Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. (Contributed)

The Lake Country Fire Department was in the right place at the right time when they snuffed a small vehicle fire Friday morning.

A new member was out for some driving training when they came across a smoking vehicle pulled off the road near Okanagan Centre and Oceola roads Jan. 29, 2021, Deputy Fire Chief Brent Penner said.

The driver of the Ford Focus was returning from a job at the Lakes subdivision when they noticed smoke pouring from the dashboard. Earlier, Penner said, the driver’s radio had shut off indicating a potential electrical issue.

The driver quickly pulled over in a safe location and got out of the vehicle.

That’s when the firefighters training in the rescue truck noticed the smoking vehicle with a few individuals around the car.

“It just kind of worked out that someone was behind them,” Penner said.

“It was the first time they’d driven the car in a significant period of time,” Penner said of the Ford Focus. “It was sitting in someone’s driveway for a while.”

The firefighters smothered the small fire with a fire extinguisher and no one was harmed in the process.

In a situation like this, Penner said it’s important to find a safe place to pull over.

“That would have helped them in this situation for sure,” Penner said of keeping a fire extinguisher in the car.

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