YOUNGSTOWN Mail truck fire halts delivery on North Side; cause unknown

YOUNGSTOWN -- U.S. Postal Service officials are investigating a fire that broke out in one of their vehicles in the 300 block of Jacobs Road around 9:35 a.m. Tuesday.
Officials said they are reviewing the mail it carried for the city's northeast side, within the 44505 ZIP code, and will deliver whatever items they can in that area as soon as possible.
About 600 customers may be affected in the vicinity of Jacobs Road and Wardle Avenue, and the cause of the blaze is unknown, said Ernie Shipley, acting customer relations coordinator for the main post office.
"There's quite a bit of singeing and some that's actually burnt," Shipley said. If postal officials can't identify the intended recipient, they'll try to use the return address to alert the sender to the damaged mail he or she sent to the East Side of Youngstown, Shipley said.
What happened: The mail carrier was driving, smelled smoke, stopped the truck and got out, Shipley said. City firefighters extinguished the blaze. The truck will be rebuilt, Shipley said. No damage estimate was available as of late Tuesday afternoon.
The truck was carrying more mail than usual because it was a day after a long holiday weekend, but fortunately, the fire occurred a few days before the carrier would be delivering a load of government benefit checks on the first and third day of the month, Shipley said.