Static electricity sparked the Salem auto shop fire that injured two workers this month.
The unusual fire, which was ruled accidental, happened June 6 while employees of Professional Auto Towing & Service were draining gasoline from a vehicle on a lift, said Salem Fire and EMS Chief John Prillaman.
Since the vehicle wasn’t grounded, the flammable liquid created its own static electricity as it flowed through the open air.
That set off a spark, which caused the gas — flowing from the vehicle’s tank to a container — to catch fire.
“This will be my 30th year in the fire service, and I have not encountered that before,” Prillaman said.
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One of the workers tried to roll the container outside to limit the spread of the flames. But when that tank turned over, he got caught in the fire, Prillaman said.
The fire marshal’s office said the fire caused $700,000 in damages.
Two employees who were injured were released from the hospital the following day, according to Prillaman.
Prillaman said a camera inside the auto shop captured the frenzy.
Such a fire can be avoided if a vehicle is grounded, he said. That way, any static charge that happens to appear will be channeled to the ground, not to the flowing gasoline.
“It doesn’t happen all the time,” Prillaman said of the static electricity in these cases. “It just so happened this was one of those scenarios when it did.”