Car appears to run over supply line at house fire, salt truck called in to clean up
Trucks were called to battle fire and ice Wednesday afternoon after a car appeared to run over a water supply line used by firefighters attacking a house fire.
The incident caused a rupture and released a huge plume of water into the air and all over the road.
Members of the St. John's Regional Fire Department were originally called to Baccalieu Street at around 3 p.m. to take care of smoke seen billowing from a basement.
After they fought back the smoke, firefighters could be seen sprinting towards a fire hydrant on the corner of Baccalieu and Old Pennywell Road. Water was spraying high into the air.
With temperatures well below -10 C, and the island hunkering down under an extreme cold warning, the water began to freeze fast. Firefighters called in a City of St. John's salt truck to help with the slush and ice.
The local firefighters union had posted a warning about driving over fire hoses earlier in the morning.
"And not hours later, someone from the public did and burst a hose line," a second tweet read. "Please everyone, pay attention and use common sense. Never drive over our fire hose."
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