Lemon Grove Firefighter Demolishes Rivals in Burn Institute Derby

In a victory for Heartland Fire and Rescue, firefighter Joe Lavigne of Lemon Grove crushed the competition. Literally.

His entries in the Burn Institute Demolition Derby came out tops June 17 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.* Lavigne competed with two demolition cars for the first time, driving cars 10 and 210.

“It felt good, especially other teams were claiming victory before the event started,” Lavigne said in his first year driving two cars.

It was Lavigne’s second win in three years, but he mainly wants to pay it forward.

“Our big thing is to raise money for the Burn Institute,” Lavigne said. “It’s a time for us to put on an event for the public and give entertainment back to them.”

According to Fire Department Network News, the Burn Institute raised $100,000 with the event, “and much of that will go towards this year's Camp Beyond the Scars, a healing camp for children with burn injuries.”

*Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported the event was held at Cajon Speedway.