At 10:30 p.m. on Wednesday June 29, a pickup truck crashed into a home in the 1900 block of Brower Lane, in an unincorporated area south of the town of Maricopa. The crash caused the home to ignite in flames at the corner where the truck hit. The fire quickly engulfed the entire house and the truck, along with a recreational vehicle parked near the house. The male driver of the truck did not survive the crash and subsequent fire. The couple living at the house and their dogs were extricated from the backyard with minor injuries.
A sheriff’s deputy arrived on scene at about the same time as a US Border Patrol agent and they found the house fully engulfed in flames. The deputy was unable to reach the pickup truck due to the intensity of the flames. He heard screaming from the backyard and ran around back to find a man and woman trapped in a fenced yard with their two dogs. The fence was a six-foot wrought-iron fence with a locked gate, which the couple was unable to open or climb over. The agent used his truck to knock down a portion of the fence so the couple could get out. Once out, the deputy found the couple, both 57, lived at the residence and were not seriously injured.
The Sheriff described the circumstances of the fatal incident as follows: “At this point in the investigation, it appears as though the truck backed into a corner of the house and got stuck. The truck engine raced, as the rear tires spun and disintegrated. The spinning tires appear to have ignited the fire, which quickly consumed the house, truck and RV.” The Sheriiff went on to say, “The residents of the house were awakened by the crash and saw the truck rammed into the corner of their house with the engine revving. When they looked into the truck, they saw that the male driver was unresponsive and made no attempt to exit the vehicle. The couple retreated to their backyard as the house erupted in flames. When they got to the backyard, they discovered they couldn’t get out. I am thankful for the quick actions of the deputy and the US Border Patrol agent to get this couple and their dogs safely away from the burning house.”
The deceased driver has not yet been identified. The circumstances of the crash and subsequent fire are still being investigated. It is not known why the man was driving on the property and the residents did not recognize the man or the truck. The house, a recreational vehicle and two trucks were completely destroyed by the fire