Car fire temporarily closes U.S. Highway 8 Monday

Traffic on U.S. Highway 8 near the Oneida/Lincoln county line encountered an unexpected detour Monday after a car fire prompted the road’s temporary closure.

A Chevrolet Equinox, driven by Matthew Pritzl of Presque Isle, was traveling east toward Rhinelander on Hwy. 8 when the vehicle’s “check engine” light came on, according to Crescent fire chief Kevin Mahner.

“They pulled over (about a mile west of Birch Bay Road), the engine stalled and they noticed it was on fire,” Mahner said. 

Pritzl and his passenger were able to exit the vehicle and call 911. The Crescent fire department responded, with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office providing assistance.

“The first arriving unit extinguished it, and Lincoln County did a very good job of traffic control,” Mahner said. 

Some 12-gauge ammunition in the car went off, but there were no injuries. 

“Sometimes people do have ammunition in there,” Mahner said.

He added that car fires have a lot of possible hazards, such as exploding airbag cartridges, tires, and bumper and hatchback shocks. 

“We close down the highway no matter what when there’s a car fire … for the safety of the public,” Mahner said. 

Traffic was rerouted for about an hour, with the highway reopening at 2:45 p.m.

Ardith Carlton may be reached at [email protected].