Caravan catches fire on highway in Oulu

In Finland, unofficial camping spots are called 'puskaparkki'. A journalist visited one in Imatra near the Imatrankoski sports field and found a motorhome there, whose owners were out on a trip.

At about 4:07 a.m. on Saturday, a motorhome reversed through a fence from a property onto Nortamonkatu street in central Rauma, coming to rest sideways across the road. The driver was taken to emergency care; the severity of injuries was not specified in the morning. Police are investigating whether the vehicle was reversing or rolled downhill on its own.

Two Finnish families converted an old tour bus into a motorhome, complete with a sauna. The vehicle has completed a test trip to South Karelia. Esko Putkonen and Marko Onttinen served as drivers. A reporter also investigated who stays at unofficial camping spots known as 'puskaparkki'.

Juha Saarinen and Sannamari Sjöman-Saarinen from Tammela have purchased a Carthago S-Plus 64 motorhome costing nearly 300,000 euros. Only 5–10 such vehicles are sold new in Finland each year. The owners note that maintenance involves hidden costs: insurance runs 1,500–2,000 euros per year, vehicle tax is 1,700 euros, and a 25-day trip to Germany cost 3,500–4,000 euros. The motorhome requires a C1 driving licence and parking space, which is scarce in Finland.

A caravan burned to the ground on Friday afternoon at a tourist area in Toikkala, Valkeala. The fire, which started on the shore of Lake Rapojärvi, completely destroyed the caravan before firefighters arrived. A neighboring caravan and nearby trees suffered heat damage. No other property damage or injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is unknown; the alarm was raised at 2:12 p.m.

In Mikkeli, many motorhome and caravan owners prefer to spend the night not at campsites but at the free harbour parking area or in so-called bush parks. On a Tuesday in July, the 24-hour harbour parking was nearly full.