A major fire broke out at a depot for a De Lijn subcontractor in Tienen (Flemish Brabant) in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Het Laatste Nieuws reports. In total, 24 De Lijn buses and 700 rooftop solar panels were destroyed.
Early in the morning, local residents reported hearing the sound of 'fireworks' exploding on the Viandra Industrial Park in Tienen. The sound of explosions were reportedly heard several miles away and even in other cities. Arriving on the scene, firefighters discovered the Multiobus warehouse on fire.
Emergency crews were deployed en masse to tackle the blaze. Smoke billowed out from the factory, and firefighters advised local residents to keep their windows closed due to the potentially toxic fumes. The flames reportedly reached several metres above the roof.
Firefighters worked through the night and well into the day on Wednesday to bring the blaze under control and prevent the fire spreading to adjacent warehouses. The blaze could be seen for miles around.
With the fire extinguished, De Lijn is now reeling from its losses. The warehouse was completely destroyed in the fire, and with it, 13 electric and 11 diesel buses, as well as several 'bendy bus' style city vehicles.
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700 expensive solar panels were also completely destroyed on the roof of the complex. The company had invested heavily into sustainability to make its vehicle recharging as green as possible. Just last week, Multiobus had placed an order for 20 new environmentally-friendly vehicles.
Multiobus is a major partner of Flemish transport company De Lijn. The destroyed buses were used to service routes in and around the Tienen area. On Wednesday morning, regular bus services were heavily affected due to the unexpected loss of vehicles. Multiobus is in consultation with De Lijn on how to minimise disruption to passengers.
Local authorities have blocked off sewers in the local area fearing polluting run off. The exact cause of the fire is as of yet unknown.
