Camper fire backs up I-29

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BROOKINGS – A camper fire backed up traffic on Interstate 29 on Friday and destroyed the camper, according to the Brookings Fire Department.

The call came in at 12:27 p.m. Friday and occurred near mile marker 133 in the southbound lane of I-29, Deputy Fire Chief Pete Bolzer said.

“A brake shoe was hanging up on the passenger side,” Bolzer said, adding that is the suspected source of the fire. “The brake shoe hanging up creates friction, which creates heat.”

Traffic was backed up on the interstate while they worked.

“We had to shut down the southbound lane because we had to put hose lines across the interstate. So the southbound lane was shut down until the fire was knocked down, then we moved everything to the side and opened one lane,” Bolzer said.

 “It was a big fire because it was a 30-foot camper,” he said.

“The owner was able to unhook his truck from the camper so there was no damage to it, but the camper was completely destroyed,” Bolzer said.

There were no injuries, he added.

Crews were on scene until 2:53 p.m., he added. He had 21 personnel and five apparatus on scene.