By Jeff Helfrich, Editor in Chief

ROCHELLE – There were no injuries after a box truck caught fire Friday morning on Petro Drive in Rochelle, said Tyler Carls, a firefighter and paramedic with the Rochelle Fire Department.

RFD was called to 900 Petro Drive at 11:17 a.m. for a vehicle fire and arrived on scene at 11:23 a.m., extinguished the fire with water at 11:26 a.m. and had it under control by 11:31 a.m. The driver of the box truck was driving through town, noticed a problem with the truck’s brakes and went to Petro to have the problem fixed when he noticed the fire, Carls said.

The fire was largely confined to the brakes and tires, but had partially spread to the loading area of ​​the truck.

“It appears the fire started due to a mechanical problem,” Carls said. “The driver was not injured and the load was not damaged. There were no hazardous materials in the truck. There was plenty of room to other trucks and the gas station. We were able to close the road and there was a fire hydrant nearby.”

Carls said the truck was a total loss in the fire and its value was in the “several thousand dollars” range. On Friday, the RFD chief, an ambulance, an ambulance, a fire truck and Rochelle police responded to the fire. Firefighters cleared the scene at 12:27 p.m.