Sprinter fire and explosion

[73shark]

To compound matters, the tires were catching fire.

[Troutboy]

Propane is a class B fire, the correct fire extinguisher would be a Dry Chemical. Using water can spread the fire. Check out this link for more info on these fires.

http://www.fire-extinguisher101.com/class-b-fires.html

[Troutboy]

Just watched full video. What a shame and horrible for the owner. I hope he is okay and had good insurance.

A couple of concerns/questions that would be nice to know:

1. Who was filling the RV up? It seems like the owner? Where was the attendant or was that guy the attendant?
2. What started the fire?
3. Why did it take what seemed like forever for the fire department to get there?

Praying for the owner, he wasn't hurt but wow, to lose the RV and everything in it...

[AirstreamCSH]

Originally Posted by Scorge-ION

I live, work, and play in the Great American Outback; AKA Northern Nevada. I'm often more than an hour from getting Emergency Services even if I can get a cell tower to phone 911. I and the folks I work with are often the first ones to discover an accident. Consequently, my labor union and employer demand we get training and annual refresher on 1st aid, CPR, fire extinguishers, etc. We are trained to radio in to report all emergencies or phone 911 but when seconds count, help is only minutes away! ...Or maybe an hour or so. So, for us, it pays to be somewhat self-sufficient.

(And, from a political perspective, that explains lots about the differences between the cities and rural areas. Cities have lots of readily-available services. A farmer or rancher, on the other hand, can't rely on an electrician, plumber, police officer, veterinarian, etc., to rush to his aid. Take, for instance, the Bench Creek Ranch: to get to it from Fallon, drive 50 miles out sparsely inhabited US50 then turn at the sign. The ranch house is 13 miles up a dirt road maintained by the ranch on land owned by the ranch owners. People out here must be self-sufficient in ways that city folk don't understand. And they're out here, not because they're too stupid to get a job in the big city. They're out here because they like being self-sufficient.)

Yes, I'd much rather have a properly equipped professional handle it. However, I'm liable to be that "poorly equipped single person trying to do the job" that you wrote of.

I've been the first on the scene of a Mercedes that center-punched a cow. I've been the second on the scene of a miner lying, dieing in a pond of blood in the middle of the highway. I've watched an F/A-18 fighter jet crash about a mile away. And I've seen lots more accidents and several burning RVs. As a "first responder" I have a moral obligation to do whatever good I can at the time.

Which is the long way around behind Jones' barn to get to why I want to know the proper fire extinguisher and method to fight a propane fire in an RV.

Have great respect for those who live far enough away that they do heir own first responding. Have family in the Carolinas living on rural property who would respond similarly.

Suggest you watch one of the many fire service Academy articles and youtubes on the subject. Don't trust what you hear on an RV forum about fighting a propane fire.

This one is a fire service education article that all here should read as it includes just grease.
http://www.fireengineering.com/artic...cue-fires.html

Here is a basic training showing the team approach. It takes a lot of water to cool as tank.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rK_Kkyi1uiQ

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Troutboy

Propane is a class B fire, the correct fire extinguisher would be a Dry Chemical. Using water can spread the fire. Check out this link for more info on these fires.

http://www.fire-extinguisher101.com/class-b-fires.html

True, but anyone who has ever taken First Aid, CPR, and general emergency response training has had it drilled into their heads that hand-held extinguishers are only appropriate for fighting incipient fires. Once the fire gets established, the only thing that can be used effectively against it is large-scale professional equipment of the type that almost no people have on hand, regardless of whether they are rural or urban in their lifestyles and their mindsets.

From OSHA:

29 CFR 1910.155(c)(26) defines "incipient stage fire" as a fire which is in the initial or beginning stage...

[OTRA15]

Thanks for the informative discussion.

As I said earlier the only proper action for a single lay person in this situation was to run like the wind, and call 911 ASAP.

The trap into which the driver dove was thinking he had the capacity to control the fire.

Not!

Lucky to be alive to watch the video of his own carelessness.

Another Darwin Award narrowly missed!

[InterBlog]

It cost me 34 cents and 5 minutes of my time to send a postcard to the propane facility, offering condolences to the owner asking them to pass the postcard along to him, the postcard which has my email address on it.

It seemed to be a non-intrusive way of perhaps making contact but it's a long shot that they will pass the thing along - no doubt there will be a messy lawsuit involved in which the two sides do each other no favors. But what the heck; like I said, it's an investment of 34 cents for the sake of curiosity. There are only a few manufacturers that fabricate integrated RV propane tanks. It wouldn't surprise me if that owner had the same tank as T1N Interstate owners.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by 73shark

To compound matters, the tires were catching fire.

... and not just the tires, but all the plastic components.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by Troutboy

Propane is a class B fire, the correct fire extinguisher would be a Dry Chemical. Using water can spread the fire. Check out this link for more info on these fires.

http://www.fire-extinguisher101.com/class-b-fires.html

But in this incident it was no longer a propane fire by the time the professionals arrived. It was tires and plastic, they used water to get it under control.

[Troutboy]

True Boxter, I was answering someone from above who asked what type of fire extinguisher should have been used on propane.

I spoke with the father of one of my kids friends who is a fire fighter and said that Water can overpower a vehicle fire due to volume of water, and cutting off oxygen. Garden hose could never handle it.

I still would like to know what caused it.

[Boxster1971]

A sharp observer on the Class-B forum correctly determined that this van fire involved a 2005-2007 Roadtrek T1N Sprinter RV. In the first few seconds of the longer 10+ minute video I posted you can clearly see the signature Roadtrek three window decals above the windshield.

[Lily&Me]

Scary, and there are still more questions than answers.

Who was this guy...was he filling the tank or the owner?

Why was he using water and a hose to put out the fire?

Was there a spill or a leak or an explosion?

Doesn't sound like anyone was hurt....always leave your rig, and take your pets with you, when filling with propane.


Maggie

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

A sharp observer on the Class-B forum correctly determined that this van fire involved a 2005-2007 Roadtrek T1N Sprinter RV. In the first few seconds of the longer 10+ minute video I posted you can clearly see the signature Roadtrek three window decals above the windshield.

That was a good call. It's visible briefly around the 10 second mark. I'd been focusing on the source of the fire in the earliest part of the video, and missed the nose shot.

[InterBlog]

Given that we are now fairly sure that it was a Roadtrek, I sent an email to Mike Wendland. If anyone could get to the bottom of what happened, it would be him.

[USAtraveler]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

A sharp observer on the Class-B forum correctly determined that this van fire involved a 2005-2007 Roadtrek T1N Sprinter RV. In the first few seconds of the longer 10+ minute video I posted you can clearly see the signature Roadtrek three window decals above the windshield.

What is a TIN Sprinter? I thought MB, in addition to its own badge, only made them for Dodge and Freightliner back in those years.

[Lily&Me]

I believe T1N references 2006 and earlier Sprinters...but don't ask me to explain, because I can't.


Maggie

[InterBlog]

Oh, it's a long sordid story involving tax avoidance and, ugh... check out this piece on the infamous "chicken tax".

Basically the bottom line is that every Sprinter sold in America as 2006 and earlier model years is a T1N Sprinter, regardless of whether it is plated Dodge, Freightliner, or MB.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

Oh, it's a long sordid story involving tax avoidance and, ugh... check out this piece on the infamous "chicken tax".

Basically the bottom line is that every Sprinter sold in America as 2006 and earlier model years is a T1N Sprinter, regardless of whether it is plated Dodge, Freightliner, or MB.

Apologies for using the term T1N as I should know that not everyone understands what it means.

The term T1N is not related to the chicken tax. The newer NCV3 vans are subject to the same chicken tax issue. T1N and NCV3 are just designations made by Daimler AG. For trivia fans: In Japan the first Sprinter van was sold as the Mercedes-Benz Transporter T1N due to Toyota using the name Toyota Sprinter, a version of the Corolla.

From the Sprinter-Source Wiki:
https://sprinter-source.com/wiki/index.php/Sprinter

"T1N Sprinter 1st Generation (1994 – 2006)
The Sprinter T1N (Transporter 1 Neu) is the replacement for the Bremer T1. T1N's come as cargo, passenger, or chassis versions. Production for the T1N continued into 2006 model year for the US market."

"NCV3 Sprinter 2nd Generation (2006 – present)
The Sprinter NCV3 (New Concept Van 3) is the redesigned replacement for the Sprinter T1N. The NCV3 appeared in Europe and in other countries in 2006 and consist of cargo, passenger, and chassis versions. They were sold under the Mercedes Sprinter or VW Crafter nameplate. North America received its own NCV3 for the 2007 model year. The US cargo NCV3s are reassembled from kits in a new purpose-built Freightliner assembly plant located in Ladson, South Carolina, and the passenger models are imported directly from Germany. The NCV3 Sprinters are sold under both the Dodge and Freightliner nameplates."

If you really what a shot of Mercedes van history try this:
http://www.mbvans.com/sprinter/disco...s-benz-history

[InterBlog]

The T1N name is not related to the chicken tax. But the multiple plate names are.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by InterBlog

The T1N name is not related to the chicken tax. But the multiple plate names are.

Not really. The tax applies to all light trucks no mater the name plate. The tax has been around since the 60's and only applies to the cargo version of the Sprinters. The passenger versions are exempt.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_tax