Multiple trailers caught fire overnight at Camping World RV Sales in Westmoreland County
ALLEGHENY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- Explosions burst into flames at a Westmoreland County camper dealership Wednesday morning. Allegheny Township Police Chief Daniel Uncapher told KDKA that at least 18 campers were destroyed or damaged.
No one was hurt. Now investigators are trying to figure out what caused it to start.
Bright orange flames shot into the sky from the back lot of Camping World off Route 356. Rachel Ramsey and her husband woke up to loud explosions.
"It just looked like a huge bonfire," Ramsey said. "You just hear like pop, pop, pop."
They got nervous and ran outside to see what was going on, and quickly realized it was coming from campers.
"It looked like three of them were on fire and it was spreading, so you'd hear, like, really big pops and hisses as the tires would explode," Ramsey said.
Uncapher said first responders got called to respond to the area at 4:42 a.m. and found several RVs on fire.
"Our officers got on scene within seven minutes," Uncapher said.
Firefighters from 10 companies worked to extinguish the flames, and for hours continued to put out hot spots that could have come from multiple chemicals on the vehicles.
"On any camper you have a lot of fuel sources, you have batteries, you have propane tanks, you have sometimes diesel and gas," Uncapher said.
Uncapher said the business was empty at the time.
"The gates were closed. They were still closed when the officers got here, so we have no reason to believe that anybody broke in," Uncapher said.
However, a cause remains unclear.
Either way, Ramsey is a little shaken, knowing things could have been much worse.
"I'm definitely not going to forget it. It was quite a way to wake up at 4:30," Ramsey said.
The state fire marshal is investigating with help from local police and fire.
KDKA reached out to Camping World for comment but has not heard back at this time.
Stay with KDKA-TV and KDKA.com for the latest on this developing story.
