Garage fire in Rohnert Park damages Model T, Army Jeep

A Model T and an Army Jeep were seriously damaged Wednesday morning in a fire in Rohnert Park that may have started under the vintage car.

A couple living at the house, in the 4500 block of Fairway Drive, got out of the house safely after an explosion rocked the garage, where the two vehicles were parked.

Firefighters arrived within three minutes of the 6:48 a.m. call and were able to contain the flames to the garage, Rohnert Park public safety Lt. Jeff Nicks said. The house suffered smoke damage and was red-tagged by city building officials.

The residents told investigators they noticed the smell of gasoline in the garage that morning and what may have been a fuel leak under the recently restored Model T.

They heard the explosion in their garage shortly after they awoke and were getting up and around inside the house, Nicks said.

“They had their garage all sheetrocked and finished, which was one of the factors that helped keep the fire in the garage,” he said. “Often these unfinished garages are just a heat box for fires to continue to progress through the walls and into the house.”

A damage estimate hadn’t been determined as of late Wednesday.

Investigators were exploring what may have ignited the gas under the vintage car.

Both cars were seriously damaged.