Man tries to stop fire in a van full of live ammunition

He was eventually able to track down the van’s owner watching the blaze from the surrounding field. In an attempt to put the fire out, he drove his van back and forth over the flames.

A Clay County, Mo., man was burning garbage on his property around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday near Highway 210 and Bluff Road when the garbage fire grew out of control. He said he evacuated the area at that point because he realized that the van was full of firearms ammunition and had a full tank of gas, according to the report.

Then the tires caught fire. He was more surprised when he heard the sound of ammunition exploding inside.

“Ammunition in that burning auto began discharging so (the responding officer) and responding firefighters kept their distance until it was safe to extinguish it”, the department wrote.

About this time, as the van owner watched his vehicle full of bullets go up in flames, a deputy arrived, who had been in the middle of a traffic stop when he saw the smoke. The man wasn’t immediately cited for any violations.

Clay County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Jon Bazzano says the owner likely will have to take a loss on the vehicle because he didn’t think insurance would cover it.