Earlier this year a car in Magic Kingdom’s parking lot caught fire. The flames continued to spread causing damage to a total of four vehicles and exposing an additional four cars. Fortunately, no one was injured. The Orlando Sentinel reported more details this week.
What happened:
- On March 16th, a lime green Dodge Charger caught fire in the Mulan section of the Magic Kingdom parking lot.
- Passersby called 911 to report the fire.
- Reedy Creek Fire Department dispatched a fire truck to the park’s lot and directed the truck to a what was expected to be the nearest hydrant.
- The hydrant in question had been removed in 2015 during demolition of the Richard Petty Speedway.
- Firefighters faced difficulty locating another hydrant to connect their hoses to — an ordeal that, according to reports lasted over 30 minutes. The nearest hydrant located was 2,000 feet away and their hoses only reached half of that distance.
- The Fire Department could not send out their 1,500 gallon tank as it had been sent to the manufacturer for repairs.
- Removal of the hydrant was not in violation of building codes, since the parking lot did not have a structure.
- Orange County Fire Department was able to come to the scene and put out the fire.
- Owners of the damaged vehicles were advised to report a claim with their insurance companies.
- Disney provided alternative transportation to the vehicle owners, though not specified what that entailed.
Something to think about:
- Tim Stromsnes, President of the Reedy Creek Firefighters Association: “From the beginning if there were hydrants, it would have cut the damage down to a minimum.”
- A Disney spokesperson said that Reedy Creek had issued permits for the removal of the hydrants.
- Tim Stromsnes on the comment that Reedy Creek had issued permits for hydrant removal: “Common sense tells you there should have been hydrants in the parking lot.”
- Disney says efforts are under way to make sure firefighters have updated information on the most updated hydrant locations.