Buzzards Bay driver narrowly escapes vehicle fire on Sandwich Road
The Wareham Fire Department hoses down the fire. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
The car was a 2017 Ford Fusion. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
Upper Cape Reality sustained minor cosmetic damage to the building. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
Fully engulfed, the fire department works to make sure the flames don't impact the structure of the building. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
The car after the fire was extinguished. Photo Source: Lexi McCarthy
The Wareham Fire Department hoses down the fire. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
The car was a 2017 Ford Fusion. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
Upper Cape Reality sustained minor cosmetic damage to the building. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
Fully engulfed, the fire department works to make sure the flames don't impact the structure of the building. Photo Source: Wareham Fire Department
The car after the fire was extinguished. Photo Source: Lexi McCarthy
The Wareham Fire Department responded to a motor vehicle fire on Sandwich Road around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13.
The 2017 Ford Fusion was driven by Buzzards Bay resident Lexi McCarthy who was on her way to work when smoke began to flow from the vents in the car. McCarthy said she pulled over into the parking lot of Upper Cape Reality just shortly after exiting Route 25.
"I didn't think much of it at first because my car has overheated before, but then it started to smell really bad and smoke started to fill the car," McCarthy said.
Just 15 seconds after McCarthy exited the vehicle with her boyfriend, the car caught fire.
"It was crazy, if life didn't play out the way it did, I would have still been on the highway. I wouldn't have gotten off the exit and probably would have been caught in the fire," she said.
McCarthy said that the fire started from under the hood. The fire department arrived to find the vehicle fully engulfed with exposure to the Upper Cape Reality building.
The building received minor heat damage to the siding and no injuries were reported. McCarthy said the department tackled the fire by around 4:30 p.m.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, although McCarthy suspects that an engine swap in early 2025 may be to blame. Though she said she is doing okay, the fire cost her more than just her transportation.
"It was definitely stressful," she said. "Especially because I was on my way to work. They ended up firing me because my car caught on fire."
While she waits for the report from the fire department, McCarthy said she is dealing with her insurance and taking the next steps to getting another vehicle.
"I've worked really hard for that car, I still owe $9,000 and it was only worth about $4,5000," she said.
