Flames that broke out in the engine compartment of a fire district volunteer left a van a smoking hulk on Deer Lake Road Thursday and scared a few area residents with the sound of gunshots when a box of ammunition also burned.

Fire District 3 volunteer Bob Howie had just driven his Dodge camper van from his son’s house on Holst Road when smoke in the engine compartment began billowing over his the windshield. Howie said he stopped the car, opened the hood and quickly realized the fire would be more than he could handle by himself. He emptied a chemical fire extinguisher on the blaze, but could not douse it.

Even when a nearby resident turned a second extinguisher on the the fire, the flames continued to burn. Eventually, the flames reached a box of .22 cal rifle ammunition in the back of the van. A number of rounds exploded in the vehicle, prompting a response from two Langley Police officers and two Island County Sheriff’s deputies.

No one was injured in the incident. The vehicle was a total loss.