Lincoln City, Ore., police officer pulls Battle Ground man from burning van

A Lincoln City, Ore., police officer pulled a Battle Ground man from a burning van early Friday morning after the man fell asleep with the van running to keep warm overnight, the police department said.

Police and fire crews were dispatched at 4:36 a.m. to the Lighthouse Square parking lot in the 4100 block of North Highway 101 for reports of a vehicle fire.

Officer Andrew Johnson was the first to arrive and found flames engulfing the engine compartment of a 2000 Toyota van. While the officer looked around, a tire exploded from the heat, a police news release states.

Johnson found a man, identified as 69-year-old Richard McMillen of Battle Ground, in the driver’s seat. McMillen looked disoriented, and Johnson reached into the burning van and pulled him out, according to the news release.

Flames began overtaking the interior of the van as Johnson pulled McMillen to safety, the agency said.

North Lincoln Fire and Rescue arrived and quickly extinguished the fire. A Pacific West Ambulance crew checked on McMillen, but he did not appear to have any burns. The crew took him to Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital to be evaluated, the news release states.

Investigators determined the fire started in the van’s engine. They did not know what caused the fire but said it did not seem suspicious.