Kittanning Service Center’s Troy Zediker knows where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire – and on the morning of Jan. 5 his senses didn’t lead him astray.

The Facility Operations specialist was driving to St. Mary’s, Pennsylvania, to perform a generator inspection when he smelled something that didn’t seem quite right. Soon after, he spotted a fellow motorist in front of him whose truck was starting to smoke.

“At first I thought the vehicle was just burning oil or something, but the smoke got thicker and thicker,” said Troy. “As I followed the driver and tried to think of ways to flag him down, I approached a hill. At that point, the smoke was so thick I could barely see my own vehicle hood.”

He immediately pulled over. The smoke had filled the entire roadway, limiting all visibility. Through a slight clearing, he spotted the motorist’s truck that was now parked on the roadside – and it was glowing underneath.

“It looked like this vehicle was definitely on fire,” Troy recalled. “I activated the emergency lights on my company vehicle, grabbed my fire extinguisher and went to assist.”

In closer proximity, he realized the motorist’s engine compartment was on fire and acted quickly to extinguish it – only for the flames to come back again a few moments later. The driver had forgotten to turn his vehicle off during the ordeal, allowing the flames to return.

With the ignition fully off, Troy made another successful attempt to extinguish the fire, this time for good. He then remained on site with the individual until emergency services arrived.

“The vehicle driver wasn’t sure what happened, but was appreciative I stepped in. His brakes had locked up and the next thing he knew, his vehicle was on fire. He never saw the initial warning signs of smoke,” added Troy, who credits job safety pre-checks with ensuring he always has a fully compliant and working fire extinguisher stored in his work vehicle.

Facilities Operations Manager Dom Capitoni said Troy’s willingness to assist a stranger in trouble is not surprising.

“Troy regularly exhibits leadership behaviors and capabilities when it comes to work and working safely,” said Dom. “DEKRA training teaches us about having passion for people and he definitely has that quality – and the courage to act on it.”