Walnut Creek Ford CHP Repair Facility
HP mechanic survives fiery encounter with patrol car on Highway 24
LAFAYETTE — A California Highway Patrol employee escaped injury Tuesday when a patrol car caught fire on the shoulder of state Highway 24, the agency said.
An auto mechanic from the CHP’s Oakland office drove the patrol car on a routine maintenance check and noticed smoke coming from under the car as he drove in the westbound direction around 10:20 a.m., CHP spokesman Officer Brandon Correia said. As the mechanic pulled over to the shoulder, the car went ablaze, Correia said.
Firefighters put out the blaze, which according to the CHP, caused ammunition inside the car to explode.
The mechanic got out of the car, moved away from it after seeing the flames and called dispatch, Correia said. He was not injured.
The agency initially said an officer was in the car, which was was severely damaged.
The CHP shut down a stretch of westbound Highway 24 near the St. Stephens Drive exit in Orinda, and diverted cars onto that off-ramp. By 11 a.m., all lanes of the highway were back open again.
A flat-bed tow truck removed the car and brought it back to the CHP’s Oakland office
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