Quick action by staff at the Silver Creek ESSO in Hope averted a possible gas station fire Sunday night, Hope’s fire chief Tom DeSorcy said.
The fire started in the ESSO sign above the gas pumps and was first noticed by a passerby around 7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14. Thanks to quick action by the station staff the fire was kept under control until firefighters arrived.
“They took evasive action in shutting off the power and the emergency shut down to the pumps, as a precaution, and took an extinguisher and managed to put it on the fire from the ground,” DeSorcy said.
When a crew of 12 firefighters arrived, they found some fire in the canopy behind the sign’s lettering, which they extinguished.
“It could have been worse, depending on it being noticed in time. Quick action by all, stopped it from becoming a lot worse than it was,” he said.
Even with the abundance of gas stations in Hope, DeSorcy said residents shouldn’t fear as gas station staff are trained and there are safety systems in place that limit fire spread.
Members of the public can also shut down the flow of fuel to gas pumps if they see a fire start in a vehicle, for example. Emergency shut off buttons are located on the gas pumps, as well as by the doors of the station.
Recent stories on fires in the Hope area:
Two taken to hospital after early morning Hope house fire
WATCH: Fire in Silver Creek doused by air and ground crews
Highway 3 reopened after mower fire
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