GREEN COVE SPRINGS — The driver didn't notice the smoke at first. Not until a passing truck told him to pull over. He did. And by then, smoke was visible. He popped the hood and was confronted with a raging inferno throughout the engine. He yelled at his sister, a passenger, to exit the vehicle.

"We were driving normally and we saw a little bit of smoke. We thought it was from the truck next to us. Instead, the truck pointed at us to pull over. When we pulled over, we saw that it was smoking pretty bad. We got out and tried to pop the hood. And then it was on fire," the driver, Landon, said.

Driving southbound on U.S. Highway 17, Landon's vehicle showed no indication of trouble — not even a "check engine" light. 

When Landon and passenger Ashlynn scrambled out, the entire front of the car was engulfed in flames. The foul smell of burning plastic and oil hung in the air. 

"I wasn't paying attention when my brother pulled over. I didn't know why. He got out and checked the hood, and it was on fire," Ashlynn said. 

Clay County Fire Rescue arrived minutes later. Fireman Zach Wright manned the nozzle and neutralized the fire, which he classified as a class C — also known as an energized electrical fire. The car used to be their grandmother's. They had the vehicle for a little more than a year. 

Landon and Ashlynn's family arrived after the fire was extinguished. The family hugged each other on the side of the road, thankful that no one was injured. Cars can be replaced. People cannot.