2024 Mercedes-Benz camper van found as ignition point to Snowmass Creek Road fire

The Monday fire that spread to five acres up Snowmass Creek Road was caused by a 2024 Mercedes-Benz camper van explosion, according to local officials. 

The van, which was converted from a sprinter to a self-sufficient camper, follows in the footsteps of older Mercedes-Benz sprinter models. 

The company in 2023 recalled nearly 53,000 2019 and 2020 sprinter van models due to fire risk. Mercedes-Benz acknowledged the recall, saying a wiring harness in 2019/2020 vehicle models would overheat “increasing the risk of fire.” As of March 2023 the company was aware of 11 sprinter van overheating events. A February 2020 change in Mercedes-Benz fuse layouts during vehicle production reportedly resolved the issue. 

Fire marshalls believe the 2024 Mercedes Benz fire on Monday was mechanically caused, according to Scott Thompson, Roaring Fork Fire Rescue chief. He said Mercedes-Benz will send investigators to the site, as will those who converted the van from a sprinter to a “full-fledged” camper, which included lithium batteries and solar panels. 

The fire started early Monday afternoon when a Snowmass Creek Road resident was driving the camper van back to their residence around mile marker five. The resident stopped to check their mailbox at the beginning of their driveway, at which point they realized the van was flaming, Thompson said.

After unsuccessfully attempting to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, the resident reported the incident to local authorities at 2:13 p.m. on Monday. Thompson did not know the name of the resident. 

Local fire crews arrived and put out a 10-foot by 10-foot brush fire near the van. The van, however, exploded minutes later and ignited more nearby brush. 

Thompson said the crews managed to keep the reignited fire to a five-acre area mostly between Snowmass Creek Road and Mesa Road, which traverses uphill from the explosion. There were several spot fires that jumped Mesa Road, which Thompson said fire crews rapidly extinguished Monday. 

Pitkin County Sheriff Michael Buglione said local and regional agencies were able to completely contain the fire by Monday night.

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Crews could not detect any flames, smoke, or heat at the site on Tuesday morning, Thompson said. But they remained wary of the “witching hour of fire” between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., when the day reaches its driest point and conditions are most conducive for reignition.

“It’s not unusual that we’ll have something pop up this afternoon,” Thompson said midday Tuesday. “But we’re going to have a crew there.”

The crews sent an infrared drone to watch for hotspots during the period. Thompson officially declared the fire extinguished at 5 p.m. Tuesday after the drone picked up no signs of heat.

Had local and regional agencies failed to contain the fire, Thompson said the burn could have spread to the 30 to 40 houses up Mesa Road, Shield O Road, and Old Pond Way. 

“And of course if it blew up it would be a direct threat to the town of Snowmass Village,” Thompson said. 

The crews’ successful Monday fire containment was exactly what they have promised to do over the past five to six years, Thompson said.

“We throw every available resource at it to try to keep the fire small,” Thompson said Tuesday. “And that’s exactly what we succeeded in doing yesterday.”

He hopes people can use this as a warning for the remainder of the high fire season. 

“We’re in an extreme fire danger time,” he said. “And people need to take precautions.”

Buglione placed the county in a Stage 1 fire restriction on June 27, with the support of all Pitkin County fire chiefs. Stage 1 fire restrictions regulate campfires to designated fire grates at permanent in-ground containment structures or store bought fire pits in developed areas, according to Pitkin County. The county defines developed areas as “an area, whether within city limits or rural, that is groomed, manicured and or watered, where grasses, brush and trees are regularly attended to by a land owner.”

The restriction also prohibits smoking except within designated areas, enclosed buildings or vehicles, developed areas, or areas without flammable materials, the county states.

The use of fireworks or explosive materials is prohibited. This includes exploding targets or bullets and tracer rounds. 

The county mandates that welders or those using similar torches remain clear of vegetation and combustibles. Operating a combustion engine without a spark-arrested device is also prohibited.

Skyler Stark-Ragsdale can be reached at 970-429-9152 or email him at sstark-ragsdale@aspentimes.com.