Exclusive: Lehigh Acres food truck owner recounts devastating fire

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. —

A food truck named Pollo Encantado in Lehigh Acres was engulfed in flames Friday after a refrigerator malfunctioned, sending thick smoke into the surrounding area along Gretchen Avenue, just off Gunnery Road.

"Yeah, it was really sad. Because it is my first food truck. It was like, there's a lot of memories into it, you know?" said Chris Sola-Martinez, owner of Pollo Encantado, reflecting on the loss of his first food truck. He started it in 2022 when there were few food trucks in the area.

"There wasn't a lot of food trucks in the area at that time, so we were one of the first big ones to start here," Sola-Martinez said.

Sola-Martinez explained that the trouble began around closing time, when he was informed that one of the refrigerators wasn't cooling properly. To avoid stressing the machine, it was unplugged.

"Everything was going great. In the flicking of an eye, it kind of just, like, blew up. At that point, flames started going everywhere. And my mom tried to extinguish it. She couldn't reach the, the red extinguisher. She had to use the water. Can, but it kind of went out. And then it just, more and more smoke grew," he said.

Exclusive video footage shows smoke and flames pouring out of the truck as the fire grew. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

"I managed to get everyone out in time. I was like, yelling at them, move, move, move! We got to go across the street and just waiting for the fire department. And at that time, it was already up in flames," Sola-Martinez said.

The food truck is a total loss, but Sola-Martinez has been able to combine food trucks temporarily and hopes to be back in full operation as soon as later this week.

"Hopefully by the time we're up and running, you know, it just keeps growing and growing," he said.

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