Pickup truck burns by La Pine truck stop pumps

A fire broke out in a pickup truck’s engine compartment Thursday afternoon after the driver pulled up to the pumps at Gordy’s Truck Stop on Highway 97 in La Pine – a dangerous place for a blaze — but attendants were able to push it away from the pumps and buildings, officials said.

The La Pine Rural Fire District responded around 2:20 p.m. to the fire reported in a Ford F-350 gas pickup owned by David and Kathy Pauley of La Pine, said Fire Chief Mike Supkis

They had just pulled up to the pumps when a fire began in the engine compartment, he said.

Attempts to put it out with a portable extinguisher were unsuccessful, but fuel pump attendants were able to push the truck a few feet away.

An engine company soon arrived to put out the fire, but the pickup already was fully involved, the fire chief said.

Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies set up a safety perimeter, and no injuries were reported, Supkis said.

The one-ton pickup is a total loss, the fire chief said, adding that the exact cause of the engine compartment fire is not known at this time.