Thursday, January 02, 2014

Men with phones set their crashed car and belongings on fire so they didn't freeze to death

Fire crews were dispatched to a vehicle fire between Pincher Creek and the Piikani Nation southwest of Alberta, Canada at 8:15am on Saturday. Upon arriving on scene, crews found the smouldering remains of a car in the ditch along with the remnants of a second fire in the middle of the road. A quick search of the area by police located the two occupants of the car at a nearby house.

According to Pincher Creek RCMP, the two occupants of the vehicle were travelling home on Saturday when they somehow found themselves lost on country roads. While driving south, they lost control of their vehicle and ended up in the ditch. Fearing for their safety in having to spend a night stranded in their car, the two men removed the seats from the vehicle and set them on fire in the middle of the road, along with all of their personal belongings.



When that fire went out, the two men decided to set their car alight. "Their car was completely consumed by fire," said Cpl. Jeffrey Feist of the Pincher Creek RCMP. "They lit their car on fire because they thought they were going to freeze to death." When daybreak came, the two men discovered that they were within easy walking distance of a nearby house, and set off to find help. Rising smoke from the burned-out hulk attracted the attention of a passerby, who called 911. Corporal Feist said that both men were in possession of cellular phones .

According to deputy fire chief Pat Neumann, Pincher Creek Fire crews extinguished what was left of the car without incident. EMS crews transported the two men to hospital where they were treated for minor burns and frostbite. Corporal Feist recommends that motorists carry emergency supplies in their car, and to prepare for the worst when travelling in winter conditions. "We certainly don't recommend lighting your vehicle on fire to stay warm," Cpl. Feist said. "Stay inside your vehicle and call 911 if you can." The case is under investigation, and charges are pending.

4 comments:

BoS said...

"We certainly don't recommend lighting your vehicle on fire to stay warm,"

That's the first thing I would do. Any reasonable person would do the same.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps they didn't have reception in that area, or the phone batteries were dead?

Anonymous said...

I want to see a copy of _that_ claim to their insurance carrier.

Lurker111

Miss Cellania said...

The person who called to report the fire had phone reception.