SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Flames ripped through a Wilbur Way storage yard in South Sacramento Monday morning destroying several semi-trucks.
"I came at 4:15 a.m. in the yard," said Harvinder Pahal, who lost his truck in the fire. "I talked to the security guard, I said, 'What happened?' He told me we have a fire in the back side."
Pahal, a truck driver for more than 25 years, has parked his Volvo big rig in the lot since 2014. It was deemed a total loss in the fire. Pahal said he parked his semi-truck on Friday afternoon and was supposed to make a shipment to Chico on Monday morning.
"When I go there, I see my truck — I said, 'Oh my God!'" said Pahal. "Everything is running in the mind. There's two pickup trucks also — total five trucks."
As an independent contractor at the age of 65, Pahal is now out of a job and without an income to support himself. Despite his truck being paid off, Pahal said he has mounting bills, and the cost to fill up his gas tank was not cheap, running about $2,000 per week.
"All of the drivers, they were worried. They're out of jobs now. All four or five of them," Pahal said. "That's the only one truck I have, so I can't go to work now so it's hurting me."
Pahal is hopeful that insurance will cover the loss, but said that process could take several weeks. For now, he's relying on his kids to help him pull through.
"It's the hard part. Now, we have to look at the truck. I don't know how much it's gonna be, or how much we have to spend more money on it. It's a little hard for me," Pahal said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District.
Photos: Semi-trucks destroyed in South Sacramento fire
WATCH ALSO:
