Flames destroy car on I-75 South

A man who had just returned from a trip received a rude homecoming Friday night when his Volkswagen caught fire and burned up on Interstate 75 South near the Grand Avenue exit.

The man, who wasn’t available for an interview, told Dayton fire crews his gas tank was pretty well full, said Firefighter Mike Rice of Engine 8.

“He just picked it up from the airport. He just got back from a trip,” Rice said the man told fire crews, who were dispatched to the area just after 7 p.m. on a report of a car fire.

The driver managed to pull the car off to the right berm of the interstate, which allowed fire crews to keep all but the right lane of traffic open.

The cause wasn’t determined, said Rice, who explained that the man told them that the fire started in the rear of the car, but the flames “pretty much engulfed the whole vehicle.”