Circus Fire
Indiana police is investigating a small fire that occurred on I-69 near Grant County. During this incident, circus animals were rescued from the fire. These animals were part of the Shrine Circus. The animals rescued were some zebras and camels.
This incident is said to have happened Saturday at around two in the morning. Troop Titus, was on patrol when suddenly he noticed a semi truck engulfed in flames. Titus located the driver which was taken out of the truck to safety. As he tried to examine the truck, he realized that there were animals there and he needed to get them to safety.
“It’s not something we see every day,” said Deputy Brent Ressett, who is with the Grant County Sheriff Office. Afterward, Titus asked Deputy Joshua Kennedy to help get the animals out of the truck and away from the flames. They ended up rescuing five zebras, four camels, and a small horse.
Once the fire was successfully extinguished which did take about four hours, and everyone was safe, the crews began to clean up the scene. All lanes were opened once again at approximately six thirty in the morning. Another Trooper at the scene, James Wilkison, stated that the fire was caused by an equipment failure in the truck.
No One Harmed
Afterwards, incident cleared and the street was once again opened, Troop Titus and Deputy Kennedy were taken to the hospital to get treated for smoke inhalation. Afterwards, the truck driver which was identified as fifty seven year old Armando C. Alvarez, was thankfully not injured.
Additionally, none of the animals had any injuries as well. Unfortunately, the semi-truck was completely destroyed. Police had tried to fence the animals to make sure they did not disappear until the other Shrine Circus trucks arrived. “All zebras & camels are safe and our public safety professionals of all stripes worked together to get over the hump on this job!!!” stated the Marion Police on a Facebook post.
Written By Erika P. Cano
Sources:
New York Post: Circus animals get loose on Indiana highway after truck bursts into flames
The Republic: Indiana State Police, Grant County sheriff deputies rescue circus animals from semi fire on I-69
ABC News: Circus animals rescued from semi-truck fire on Indiana highway
Top And Featured Image Courtesy of Laura LaRose Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Thomas Hawk Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
