BROOKSVILLE — Fire of unknown origin destroyed a dump truck on the Coastal Road near the Golden Stairs, which are steps leading to Betsy’s Cove, in South Brooksville Monday, according to Brooksville Fire Chief Matt Dow.
The truck belongs to Basil Ladd.
Dow said Ladd smelled something and pulled up in front of a church. Dow said before Ladd got out of the truck there was smoke everywhere, so he rolled the truck down the road away from the church and utility lines.
“He said it was gone so quick he couldn’t even get to his fire extinguisher,” Dow said. “It was just gone instantly.”
Ladd called his wife, who called the Fire Department. It took the department a half hour to extinguish the fire and then more time cleaning up the area while waiting for a wrecker and the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office to arrive.
The truck was destroyed.
“You can still see the cab. It melted the windshield,” Dow said. Some of the truck parts “just melted right into the hot top.”
“He doesn’t use the truck that often,” the chief said. “He takes it up the road to take brush and back.”
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