A fire that consumed much of a U-Haul truck Wednesday morning in the 2900 block of County Road 638 was the result of two suspects fleeing the scene of an burglary and crashing the truck into a ditch, police said.

Cape Girardeau police went to a burglary call at 8:30 a.m. in the 2000 block of Steven Drive, according to public information officer Adam Glueck.

When officers arrived, they saw a man running from the house and get into the U-Haul truck, Glueck said. Officers tried to stop the truck, but it fled north on Perryville Road for several miles until the road changed into County Road 638, Glueck said.

Officers removed a man and a woman from the flame-engulfed truck when they arrived on the scene. Both were taken to a Cape Girardeau hospital.

East County Fire Protection District firefighters extinguished the vehicle blaze in about 5 minutes, assistant chief Kelly Allen said.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol also responded and is taking a report of the accident.

Glueck said the police department has applied for criminal charges for both suspects. The victims have yet to report items stolen, but Glueck described the house as ransacked.

bkleine@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3644

Pertinent address:

2000 block of Steven Drive, Cape Girardeau, Mo.

2900 block of County Road 638, Cape Girardeau, Mo.