The fire destroyed a bus in transit on Tuesday afternoon, forcing the Société de transport de l’Outaouais (STO) to immobilize 45 vehicles.
The incident occurred at the junction of highways 5 and 50, in Gatineau, just before 5 pm on Tuesday.
A bus on board, with no passengers on board, caught fire. The driver stopped the vehicle after realizing there was a fire in the back of the bus. He escaped here unscathed.
Police and firefighters rushed to the scene to control the fire. According to the City of Gatineau’s Fire Department, three fire trucks were dispatched to the scene, with six firefighters on board. It took them 40 minutes to extinguish the fire.
That night the vehicle was pulled into the garage and an investigation was conducted to determine the causes of this incident.
In the evening, the STO indicated, via email, that following the fire, the decision was made to immobilize 45 articulated buses of the 2012 and 2013 series for an indefinite period.
When we learned of the incident, it was another articulated bus from the 2012-2013 series. We remember that last summer, we had a fire in the Rapibus corridor, so we didn’t want to take any chances and we decided, as a precaution, for our drivers and our customers, to make of a preventive immobilizationexplanation by Josée Lafleur, head of public affairs for the transportation company, in an interview with ICI Ottawa-Gatineau.
Ang STO with a total of 380 vehicles, including 83 articulated buses as burned on Tuesday. The value of such a vehicle is estimated at just over a million dollars, of which 60% to 90% is subsidized, Ms. Lafleur. They are usually on the road for a minimum of 16 years.
This is the second incident of its kind leading to the total loss of a vehicle in this series in less than a year, recalling STO.
This decision was made in the interest of safety for our team and our customers. In fact, although we do not have information that allows us to pinpoint a common cause for these incidents or believe that another such incident may be imminent, we do not wish to pose any risk in terms of security.explanation of the transportation company in a written statement.
The 45 vehicles will be inspected in partnership with the manufacturer, Nova Bus and returned to the road as the inspections are completed, the STO.
From now on, we will board each bus and we will actually pass them with a fine comb. We will conduct a full inspection. And as the inspections are completed, they will quietly be back on the road in the coming weeks, though it’s hard to stop the delay now.said Ms. Lafleur.
Expected effects
Until then, effects should be expected on the regular network, we warn.
” We will try to do this as soon as possible, because we know it will have an impact on the network. “
It is certain and certain that getting 45 buses on the road is a heartbreaking choice, but for us, safety is really our priority. […] Our dispatch teams will work out a way to minimize the impact on the service. […] If there are cancellations, they will be notified through the standard platforms STO. And as much as possible, we are protecting all schools and joint lines this morningMs. ensures. Lafleur, which also indicates that users can reach STO using the phone.
There is information from Gabriel Le Marquand Perreault
Source: Radio-Canada
