A 52-year-old man and a dog in Foley, Alabama, died after the RV they were in caught fire. Reports say another occupant of the 32-foot camper — which had been parked behind a residence at the time of the fire — managed to escape unhurt.
Man and dog dead in RV fire in Foley, Alabama
On Mar. 17 at around 12:16 a.m. as per WKRG News 5 reporting, the Foley Fire Department and Foley police responded to the scene after receiving reports of the fire. Upon arrival, they found the RV engulfed in flames, with the man, identified as Dallas Omega Martin, and the dog trapped inside.
After containing the blaze, firefighters searched the camper and found Martin deceased with severe burns. Preliminary autopsy established that Martin died from the fire. Moreover, the fire crew discovered the dead body of a small dog inside the RV.
Since the tragic incident, authorities and fire officials in Alabama have been trying to piece together the exact cause of the blaze. As of now, the cause remains unknown “due to the extensive damage to the camper and no first-hand knowledge of the fire origin.”
Unfortunately, RV fires are quite common. Findings by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) estimate that nearly 2,000 fire incidents occur in RVs annually. While the thought of your RV going up in flames with you and your dog inside is pretty scary, you can avoid this by taking a few fire safety precautions.
According to NFPA, factors such as mechanical and electrical failures, lack of functional smoke alarms, and the presence of flammable items near RV heaters can result in an RV catching fire.
If you’re an RV owner who loves to hit the road with your canine companion, it’s important for you to keep up with your camper’s routine maintenance. Furthermore, it’s essential to install enough smoke alarms, keep fire extinguishers preferably in every compartment, have an escape exit, and test your detectors regularly.
