PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A hearth that broken 40 decommissioned SEPTA buses at a Philadelphia storage yard on Thursday was attributable to a battery on an electrical bus, in keeping with SEPTA.
(The video within the participant above is from earlier protection.)
Staff reported the hearth round 6:15 a.m. on the SEPTA Midvale District, subsequent to the Roberts Yard, within the 2400 block of Roberts Avenue within the Tioga-Nicetown part of town.
It was upgraded to a 3-alarm blaze round 7:30 a.m. Thick, black smoke may very well be seen billowing within the air on the peak of the hearth.
When the smoke lastly cleared, among the buses may very well be seen melted to the bottom.
SEPTA bus yard fireplace as seen from Chopper 6
A complete of 100 buses had been within the yard, together with gas-powered and electrical buses.
Of the 40 decommissioned SEPTA buses, 15 had been electrical, officers stated. They had been slated to be offered for a “nominal quantity” or scrapped, SEPTA Interim Common Supervisor Scott Sauer stated.
Decommissioned buses are usually saved within the space for a yr or much less whereas SEPTA makes preparations to eliminate them.
The electrical buses concerned had been made by Proterra and had not run in a number of years. Sauer stated SEPTA is concerned in ongoing litigation with Proterra, and the buses had been nonetheless being saved as a part of the litigation.
Once they had been put into storage, Sauer stated the batteries had been disconnected, the coolant was drained and the buses continued to be inspected in accordance with producer suggestions.
In 2022, a coolant challenge was accountable for a hearth in one other Proterra bus positioned at a special depot.
No accidents had been reported within the incident.
Chopper 6 video reveals the hearth at a SEPTA storage facility within the Tioga-Nicetown part of Philadelphia.
Asst. Hearth Chief Charles Walker stated throughout a information convention that firefighters encountered a number of challenges, together with entry to the hearth scene and water provide points.
Walker stated SEPTA staff had been in a position to transfer buses that weren’t but on fireplace so firefighters had been in a position to get to the flames.
As soon as they had been in a position to get extra water to the scene, crews had been in a position to make progress extinguishing the hearth.
Explosions had been heard in the course of the fireplace, which Walker attributed to tires bursting from the intense warmth.
The ATF responded as a result of the Okay-9 coaching middle is on-site with small quantities of explosives. All explosive units had been rapidly eliminated.
SEPTA bus yard fireplace as seen from Chopper 6
Midvale Depot is SEPTA’s largest facility, which is used for each upkeep and storage. Some 600 workers work there on any given day.
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The fireplace despatched a big plume of smoke into the sky, and the Philadelphia Division of Public Well being stated pollution had been detected within the air.
Officers say the air high quality has since returned to regular ranges.
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