RALEIGH, N.C. — The fire that destroyed four former Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey circus railcars in March may have been arson, a law enforcement officer told a state legislative committee on Thursday.
The Raleigh News and Observer reports Chief Deputy Brandon Medina of the Nash County Sheriff’s Office told the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee that two gas cans were found near the railcars. “That would leave me to believe that someone started the fire,” he said.
The four cars were part of a group of nine state-owned former circus cars being stored in Nash County when the fire broke out on March 10 [see “Former Ringling Bros. railcars burn …,” Trains News Wire, March 10, 2022]. The cars were purchased in 2017 to be rebuilt for use in state-sponsored Piedmont passenger service, but became surplus when the state instead ordered new railcars. An earlier effort to sell the railcars was unsuccessful; the five remaining circus cars, along with two others, are again available in an auction [see “North Carolina seeks to sell remaining circus railcars,” News Wire, April 6, 2022].
Pretty good investigation. Gas cans in the area. No power to the cars, thus no electrical problem. No storms in the area for a lightning strike.
Any homeless using them for housing.
Sadly the rest of the cars will probably end up at the scrap yard.
Looks like all that can be saved are the trucks. Dastardly deed was done to this equipment, and the citizens of NC.
The remaining metal above the trucks should be recyclable as scrap metal for some additional recovery if it covers the expense to recycle it in excess of the cost to landfill it..