Another vehicle bursts into flames – this time on VG

in All News / By: BVI News Online on May 8, 2017 at 5:35 AM /

File photo

Police and fire-fighters are trying to ascertain the cause of a fire that destroyed another motor vehicle – this time in the North Sound area of Virgin Gorda.

A number of vehicles have been bursting into flames while being driven on the territory’s roads.

In the latest incident, which happened four days ago, David Straker was driving his jeep along the North Sound roadway when it developed mechanical problems.

When he stopped and opened the bonnet to investigate, the vehicle started to burn.

The Virgin Islands Fire and Rescue Services was contacted.

When the fire-fighters arrived on the scene, they extinguished the fire, but the jeep was already completely destroyed.

Police also went to the location.

This incident brings to at least six, the number of vehicles that have burst into flames while being driven on the territory’s roads since the start of the year.

There were several similar complaints last year, prompting BVI News Online to seek answers from the Virgin Islands Fire and Rescue Services.

Fire Officer Melvin Jeffers, almost a year ago, stated that transmission issues especially in automatic vehicles were to be blamed for most of the fires.

“Persons need to always have their vehicles checked by someone – especially those automatic vehicles. The reason I say automatic is because transmission fluid is mostly the cause of these fires. Once the transmission starts leaking, you are driving and you won’t know that your vehicle is burning unless someone shouts at you and tells you fire under your vehicle. Most of the time that is what we hear: somebody seeing the fire under the vehicle and stopping the vehicle all the time, and then as soon as it stops it is already fire,” Jeffers further said last year.

He, at the time, continued: “Transmission fluid and brake fluid etcetera are very easy to light. Most of the times when I go and check, you could see transmission is mostly the problem. When you ask the drivers about the issue with the vehicle, they usually say it just came out of the shop with a transmission problem. So apparently they either over-fill the transmission and it starts leaking out or something.”