Friday’s burning C-2 was not the first Duke bus to unexpectedly combust.
A smoking C-2 bus parked at the West Campus bus stop near Few Quadrangle at approximately 3:30 p.m. Friday, said John Dailey, chief of the Duke University Police Department. Six people were riding the bus when it caught fire, Dailey said, though no one was injured. This is the third University bus to catch fire in six years.
“We’re always worried about something happening to a bus, whether it’s a fire or something mechanical or something worse,” said Sam Veraldi, director of Parking and Transportation Services. “We’re going to continue on the normal path of inspection process.”
The fire started because a piece of rubber had worn down in the bus motor, said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president for administration and Duke’s emergency response coordinator. Veraldi added that this diagnosis is preliminary, and officials are still investigating the exact cause of the fire.
The bus—a 1994 Orion brand model—was last inspected in September, with nothing reported as abnormal, Veraldi said, adding that each bus is inspected every 90 days. Parking and Transportation Services will be inspecting the rest of the University bus fleet to see if there is any evidence of similar problems on other Orion buses.
Sophomore Jordan Fraser was riding the bus from Central Campus to West and was about to get off when two students alerted the driver of the fire. The driver pulled over and parked at the side of the West Campus bus stop.
“I got off the bus, and there were flames coming out of the back,” Fraser said. “I’m really glad I got off in time.”
Bus drivers—including the driver of the burning C-2—declined to comment.
The Durham Fire Department put out the fire, and the bus was towed to a shop, Dailey said.
The University will determine the severity of the fire’s impact on the bus and will assess the damage to see if the bus should continue to operate, Veraldi added.
“I’m suggesting that we would not [keep the bus in service],” he said.
The University is planning on replacing all buses in the fleet at some point. Details regarding the timeline for the replacement of the fleet are still unclear, Veraldi said.
There are 28 buses in the University’s fleet currently, Veraldi said. The University has bought three used buses since 2009 and recently purchased two hybrid buses for $1.7 million. Veraldi said he hopes that the hybrid buses will be in service Oct. 22 or Oct. 29, adding that they will be in the University’s automotive shop this week to be decorated with sustainability-themed exterior wraps.
“We’ve taken four buses out of service so far and will continue to do that as we acquire new buses,” Veraldi said.
Two buses have caught fire previous to Friday’s burning bus. A C-1 caught fire in front of the Allen Building March 29, 2006, and another on East Campus Oct. 14, 2009.
The 2006 bus fire involved an excessive release of hydraulic fluid, prompting the engine to combust. The burning bus in 2009 had been recalled by its manufacturer because of electrical wiring problems. At the time, three other buses in Duke’s fleet were recalled, but the University had not stopped running them. Administrators said they were not aware of the recall until after the bus caught fire.
No one was injured in the 2009 and 2006 bus fires.
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