Parked BMW burns in Sellwood; cause under investigation

An older BMW two-door sedan erupting in flames near the intersection of S.E. Clatsop Street and 13th Avenue caught the attention of a BEE reader with a camera on Wednesday afternoon, July 3rd. But apparently no one in the vicinity saw how the fire started.

Westmoreland Fire Station 20’s Engine Company was sent to the blaze at 4:28 p.m. As they rolled up, a crew member radioed to dispatchers, “We’re coming up to a car that is fully involved with fire.”

Seeing they’d need more to extinguish it than just the water in their onboard tank, a crew member hooked a water supply line hose to a nearby hydrant while others pulled out hose and began fighting the fire. The BEE reader provided photos to the newspaper.

The fire was quickly put out; then a lieutenant radioed dispatchers asking for an investigator to come and inspect the destroyed vehicle.

Later asked about incident, all PF&R Public Information Officer Rick Graves could tell THE BEE was, “Nothing of note; it was a fully-involved car fire, handled by a single engine company. It is still under investigation.”