ELYSBURG - Firefighters quickly extinguished a blaze on board of a motorhome owned by a noted coach and author on trapshooting Monday morning.
Crews were called at 11:15 a.m. for a report of a mobile home fire with entrapment in the camping area on the grounds of the Pennsylvania State Sportsmen's Association, but the home's owner, Kay Ohye, of New Brunswick, N.J., was not inside.
Frank and Pat Mattis, of Maryland, made the call for help.
"My husband first came outside and saw Ohye's Jeep parked near the home with the driver's door open, and went for a coffee," Pat Mattis said. "When he came back, he saw the car still sitting there, the motorhome locked and smoke coming from the top of it. We were banging on everything and were ready to break a window to get in."
As it turned out, Ohye went for breakfast with a friend and was not on the grounds at the time.
Ralpho Township Assistant Fire Chief Bob Dluge reported that fire crews had the blaze out within 15 minutes.
"After an investigation, we could see that the fire originated in the stove area of the vehicle, and we quickly extinguished the blaze," Dluge said.
Emergency crews also ripped out some of the paneling in the recreational vehicle that was damaged by the blaze, including a coffee pot and overhead microwave oven that were burned.
Dluge estimates about $5,000 in damage.
The owner, who refrained from comment, is a noted authority on trapshooting who has authored numerous articles and books on the subject.
He was in town to conduct a few clinics in conjunction with the 2011 ATA Eastern Zone Shoot held over the weekend.