Boom truck catches on fire.

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief. 

SUMMIT TOWNSHIP — A boom attached to a utility truck caught on fire on a job site Wednesday afternoon. Workers from Great Lakes Power and Pipe, Inc. were on Marrison Road, just east of Pere Marquette Highway when a bird’s nest inside the boom apparently caught on fire, causing the boom to stop working in mid-air. Workers on scene attempted to extinguish the fire themselves with fire extinguishers but were unsuccessful. A firefighter who was driving by saw the fire and called Mason-Oceana 911. Riverton Fire Department was dispatched.

Initially, firefighters tried to extinguish the fire from the ground, but the water stream did not quite reach the source of the fire. Another boom truck from the utility company was then used to get closer to the fire, according to Fire Chief Joe Cooper.

The utility workers said they were working on bringing a three-phase electrical service line to a new Dollar General Store that will be located on Monroe Road west of US 31 near Pentwater. The Summit Township location was being used as a staging area, according to Cooper. They also added that they inspect their vehicles thoroughly but somehow the birds alluded them.