Couple have lucky escape as car bursts into flames in Greenfield
The badly damaged Citroen in Greenfield
Fire service clearing debris from the road
Reporter: Stuart Littleford
A couple had a lucky escape this morning when the car they were travelling in burst into flames near Greenfield station.
Graham Beswick, 59, was driving from Ashton towards Greenfield on Oldham Road with his wife when he became aware of other motorists piping their horns and waving at him. After stopping his car he immediately spotted smoke billowing from the front of the vehicle.
Mr Beswick, from Chadderton, told Saddleworth News: “We both got out of the car and I was just about to lift the bonnet when my wife shouted that flames were starting to appear. I couldn’t fight the fire as the heat was just too much, all we could do was retreat and watch. We just had to wait for the fire service to arrive – we are just glad to be safe.
“It’s frightening how fast the car went up in flames and the tremendous amount of heat that was generated was staggering. My daughter has now turned up in her car to help us. The car was to be used at a wedding next week for moving things around but we will have to rethink that one now.”
The Citroen C4 suffered extensive damage to the engine bay and front end.
The road surface badly damaged by the fire
The fire service arrived quickly on the scene to put out the fire and also helped to move the vehicle from the junction of Oldham Road and Ladcastle Road.
Fire-fighters used high pressure hoses to remove oil and fuel from the road surface.
It is believed that Oldham Council will be sending their highways department out to the scene later to repair any damage to the road surface caused by the intense heat.
Author: Jude Gidney - Editor
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