COLUMBUS, Ind. – A test vehicle on fire inside the Cummins Tech Center late Monday morning forced the evacuation of the facility and prompted a full response of emergency responders from numerous agencies. The fire was contained to a test cell and quickly extinguished after firefighters arrived.
Just before noon, firefighters from the City of Columbus Fire Department (CFD) and Columbus Township Fire and Rescue responded to the Cummins Tech Center, 1900 McKinley Ave., after a report of a fire inside the building. CFD was the first to arrive and reported that smoke was visible from the rooftop ventilation system and a full evacuation appeared to be underway.
The first firefighters were met by Cummins Emergency Response Team (ERT) members who directed firefighters to the fire and shared that a gasoline-fueled truck with about 100 gallons of fuel was burning within a test cell. They entered the test cell where they found virtually zero visibility and high heat. Within a few moments of searching the test cell, crews saw the glow of a fire and began to attack the flames. The fire was fully extinguished within minutes.
Cummins representatives told investigators that the fire occurred during the testing of the vehicle. When technicians discovered flames, they reported the fire to ERTs, the facility’s evacuation alarm was activated, and CFD was dispatched.
The small blaze was confined to the testing cell and caused significant damage to the prototype vehicle. Smoke and water damage was visible within the test cell. No damage estimate is available. The fire operation was terminated at approximately 1:10 p.m. No injuries were reported.
