No injuries when fire erupts at Philadelphia transit lot filled with decommissioned buses

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A fast-moving fire erupted early Thursday at a transit bus lot in Philadelphia and burned dozens of decommissioned vehicles, sending a thick plume of black smoke into the sky but causing no injuries. The fire did not impact the morning commute.

The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.

Citing an abundance of caution, the city’s Public Health Department warned nearby residents to stay indoors if possible and urged others to avoid the area. Agency inspectors collected samples to assess air quality and the potential for any threat, but said later Thursday that conditions had quickly improved after the blaze was contained.

The fire at the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority facility started sometime before 6:15 a.m., said Andrew Busch, SEPTA ’s director of communications. Several buses were soon engulfed in flames, and the fire burned for nearly two hours before it was declared under control.

The lot where the fire broke out was filled with decommissioned buses scheduled for disposal, Busch said. Forty buses were damaged overall.

Firefighters initially had trouble gaining access to water to extinguish the blaze, but soon got it under control after other SEPTA buses were towed out of the way and fences were taken down. Busch noted that no in-service buses were in the area where the blaze occurred.