Dramatic footage shows the moment a Fiat 500 burst into flames in the middle of a busy city centre road.
The car had been waiting at a red light at a junction in Blackfriars, Salford when it started smoking and flames suddenly engulfed it.
Eyewitnesses say the driver escaped the death trap and called 999 after he had unsuccessfully attempted to put out the fire himself.
Salford Central Fire Station swiftly sent out a fire engine, and the footage showed firefighters heroically extinguishing the flames within seconds of arriving. The fire engine had dramatically shown up with its siren blaring as the Fiat 500 was wholly engulfed in thick, black smoke which threatened to affect nearby flats.
It was local 41-year-old IT consultant, Tomasz Zaustowicz, who captured the footage on his mobile phone.
He told Manchester Evening News: “It was definitely an unusual thing to see and it was definitely a dramatic view. I’m very happy nobody got injured.
“It was just on my way home when I saw it. I could see a person running around with a small extinguisher trying to put it out. It looked like they must have stopped at the traffic lights when it happened.”
Despite the video showing the firefighters quickly tackling the blaze, firefighters remained at the scene for about forty minutes.
A spokesperson for Great Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “Just before 7pm last night (Saturday 23rd September), one fire engine from Salford Central fire station was called to reports of a vehicle fire on Blackfriars Road, Salford. The crew arrived quickly at the scene. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus used a hose reel and water jet to extinguish the fire. Firefighters were in attendance for around forty minutes.”
