Photo by Deb Gau Tracy firefighters sprayed water onto the wheels of a railroad caboose on display at the Wheels Across the Prairie Museum on Thursday. A fire caused some damage to the underside of the caboose.

TRACY — A fire damaged part of a railroad caboose on display at the Wheels Across the Prairie Museum in Tracy on Thursday afternoon.

While there were no injuries in the fire, museum volunteers said firefighters did have to cut into part of the ceiling and wall of the caboose while putting it out.

“We’re just glad we caught it when we did,” said museum executive director Jon Wendorff.

If volunteers hadn’t been working at the museum that day, the fire might have caused more damage before it was reported, Wendorff said.

He and museum volunteers were working at the museum when the fire was discovered.

Wendorff said the museum wasn’t open that day, but some visitors had stopped by, and he was opening doors of museum buildings so the visitors could look inside.

As he approached the caboose of the museum’s Chicago and Northwestern freight train display, Wendorff noticed smoke, he said.

Wendorff opened one of the doors to the caboose.

“I couldn’t see a thing,” he said — the inside of the caboose was black with smoke.

Museum volunteer Kami Hanson called 911, and the Tracy Fire Department, Police and Ambulance all responded at the scene.

“When I first saw the smoke, it was coming out from under the wheels,” volunteer Norine Hanson said.

Firefighters at the scene Thursday sprayed water around the wheels and underside of one corner of the caboose. Wendorff said firefighters also had to cut a hole in the ceiling of the wooden caboose, and cut into part of the wall to help get water inside.

The damage was in a corner of the caboose that originally had been a bathroom for train crew members. After the fire was put out, a hole in the floor in the bathroom area could be seen.

Wendorff said he thought the fire could have started accidentally through heat or a spark from work on the museum’s train tracks.