Stubborn vehicle blaze challenges volunteer firefighters

A unique vehicle hitting a deer on a Saskatchewan highway led to a stubborn blaze for volunteer firefighters.

The Elbow Fire Department was called out to  a location on Highway 19 near Douglas Provincial Park just before 11 p.m. Wednesday.

Firefighers arrived to find what appeared to be an ambulance completely engulfed in flames.

“It had hit a deer and ended up in the ditch and that’s when the fire broke out,” volunteer firefighter Darren McCooye said.

It was later discovered that the vehicle was in fact an ambulance that had been converted into a mobile tattoo removal clinic.

McCooye said a pair of propane tanks on the vehicle were feeding the blaze.

“It’s literally burnt to the ground. We used fire extinguishers and exhausted all the tools we had to put the fire out and it still continued to smolder and burn throughout the night.”

The fire crew had to make two trips to Elbow for more water, but were unable to do much more than contain the blaze until it petered out.

McCooye said the driver of the vehicle was uninjured, and got taken back to his home by RCMP.