Fire destroys vehicle seconds after occupants escape

BELMONT — A Laconia couple en route to Florida escaped their SUV unharmed just seconds before the vehicle burst into flames.

The Belmont Police Department reported the car he began having mechanical problems and not being unable to maintain speed as the vehicle, which was towing a small cargo trailer, was traveling along Route 3 last Thursday, prompting the driver to pull into the Major Brands Plaza parking lot.

No sooner did Robert and Summer Jobin get themselves and their dog out the vehicle, when the Ford SUV became engulfed in flames.

The heavy black smoke and flames drew traffic along Route 3 to a crawl as firefighters doused the flames. The smoke and flames could be seen from the Laconia Bypass.

A 25-by-30-foot section of the vinyl siding of the north end of the plaza was warped by the heat of the flames.

One of the plaza business owners, seeing the flames so close to the building, pulled the plaza fire alarm system because of concern the fire might spread to the building.

Firefighters and equipment from the Laconia Fire Department were the first to arrive on the scene and managed to put out the flames before they could spread to the plaza.

The Jobins were on their way to their winter retreat in Florida when the incident occurred, Belmont Police Capt. Rich Mann said. They had another vehicle at their Laconia home and brought that back to hook up the U-Haul trailer, which was not damaged.