Fire in SBB Stuttgart’s depot «could have been caused by e-bus charging». MVG Munich takes 8 e-buses out of service

A large fire event in Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen (SBB)’s depot, in Gaisberg, destroyed 25 buses on Thursday 30th September. A few days ago, a first assessment by the police, reported on many German media, said that the fire could have been caused by an electric bus during charging procedure.

As reported on the Zeit, this is the conclusion of the investigators after checking the data of the fire alarm system and the temperature sensors, a police spokeswoman announced. However, further investigations are necessary.

Electric bus charging caused fire in Stuttgart?

The blaze completely destroyed 25 buses of different models and kinds, including two with electric drives (SBB has four e-buses in its fleet, two Volvo and two Mercedes). The vehicles involved in the fire are reported as being Mercedes eCitaro. Six SSB employees received medical attention during the fire.

As a consequence of Stuttgart’s event, MVG Munich is taking out of service eight electric buses, as reported yesterday on Merkur.de. It has been decided as safety precaution. The measure only applies to buses of the same type and initially only until the cause of the fire has been finally clarified, MVG says. It means that Mercedes eCitaro are being taken out of the roads.

“Safety is always our top priority. Therefore, we have decided to take the vehicles out of service as a precaution until detailed findings on the fire in Stuttgart are available,” MVG Managing Director Ingo Wortmann is quoted as saying in a press release. Other MVG electric buses are to continue running as usual.

[Credit picture: alliance/dpa | Andreas Rosar]