Police Officer Fights Fire On Tulsa Highway

Tulsa police are again urging drivers to secure their loads after they say a mattress fell off of a vehicle, got lodged under a truck, and caught fire.

Police say items falling off of cars and trucks happens more often than you think.

In this instance, it was a quick-thinking officer who jumped in to help.

“There was a flaming mattress lodged underneath the pickup,” said Officer Warren Bigelow.

Bigelow was driving west on Highway 412 Monday morning when he saw the burning mattress.

He says he quickly pulled over to help the driver.  First, he tried to pull the mattress out from under the truck.

“Then I went to my car and got my fire extinguisher and I was able to put it out in a matter of a couple of minutes,” he said.

Bigelow called the Tulsa Fire Department to help him.  He says he believes that mattress fell off of another vehicle and then the driver of this truck ran over it.

“It caught on something on the underside of his vehicle and he dragged it long enough that friction developed enough heat to set the mattress on fire,” said Bigelow.

He says police commonly receive calls about objects on highways and streets that can cause damage to vehicles and even injure people.  Having an unsecured load is also against the law.

“Even something that you might not think is dangerous, like a mattress catches fire, and could destroy a vehicle or could even kill someone if they didn’t realize their car was on fire,” stated Bigelow.

In the meantime, he hopes people think twice and make sure their load is locked down.

He says he would “like people to just do it because it’s the right thing to do and you don’t make the roads more dangerous.”

Police say if you see an unsecured load, call their non-emergency number, unless it’s life-threatening, then call 911.