Nau speak: Vegas: Firefighters

What do you do when your engine catches fire?!

Well, ideally, you find a safe place to pull over and call the emergency services... In this case, that's what the unfortunate driver of this flaming vehicle had to do. While, thankfully, I've never personally experienced my engine bursting into flames, I have had to deal with it overheating on the regular thanks to Las Vegas's supremely unforgiving summer temperatures. While it's not as hot as the surface of the sun, or Death Valley (doesn't the name say it all, though?), it's hot enough to do some real damage when it's peak summer temperatures out. Given that most vehicles on the road these days are combustion engines, there's a lot of flammable liquids under high pressure and a lot of room for things to go wrong. The car involved here was probably not going to be salvageable to drive due to the extent of the damages, but at least it didn't escalate into a larger fire. Never underestimate the threat of a well-fed fire, or the danger of any fire, really. Las Vegas is a desert and the environment extremely dry, so it doesn't take much of a spark to ignite an inferno.

I don't know about you, but I'm definitely grateful for the firefighters and other emergency personnel that put their lives on the line to save ours. It's not always a glamorous job- sometimes the Las Vegas Fire Department has to roll out to extinguish a flaming shopping cart, or to help someone who's fallen at a casino after over-indulging in the free booze offered throughout the gaming areas to anyone playing. And emergencies can happen at any time of day, too- so there's no rest for the weary. They might stop to grab a quick bite to eat and before their food is ready be called out again, leaving behind their meal and their money. Like I said, I'm grateful for the work they do. I don't know that I'm cut out for it, but my maternal grandpa was an EMT later in life after being inspired by those who saved his life during a heart attack, so I guess he instilled that appreciation into me young.