Millions of dollars – 3,500 rental cars burn
On Friday, April 3rd, a fire near Fort Myers, Florida in a parking field near the Southwest Florida International Airport destroyed over 3,500 rental cars. Fortunately, no injuries or fatalities were reported, but the cost of these vehicles is worth millions of dollars.
These rental cars were parked in an overflow area near the airport. By nightfall, the blaze was so intense, the city of Fort Myers was blanketed in thick smoke. Many residents reported seeing flames and smoke throughout the evening.
Several fire fighters and over 80 water drops were employed by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office’s aviation unit to fight the blaze. No buildings were damaged in the fire.
Melinda Avni, Mitigation Specialist for Florida Forestry Service of Caloosahatchee, said authorities were called to put out the fire around 5 p.m. Friday, when there were about 20 vehicles involved.
“By the time we had units on the scene, we had 100 cars (on fire). We lost count after the hundreds,” she told CNN.
60 to 90 million dollars worth of automobile
If you calculate 3,500 cars by their approximate value of $25,000 each – you get $87,500,000. Granted, most of these cars were sold as fleet vehicles with a fairly low sales price. Still, the sheer number of vehicles is mind boggling.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
About 18 hours after it began, the blaze contained by 10:30 a.m. Saturday – according to the Florida Forestry Service.
Speaking of fire..
