Editor's Note: This article has been contributed by Peter R. Thom, president, and William J. Woehrle, tire group leader, at Peter R. Thom and Associates Inc.
A limousine fire in the San Francisco Bay Area caught the nation's attention recently with its horrific loss of life and mysterious origin. The victims were members of a bridal party out for a celebration. The fatal ride, a stretched 1999 Lincoln Town car, was part of a fleet managed by a licensed limousine company with a clean operating record. That night, the only potential violation was that the limo was licensed to carry eight passengers, and the party numbered nine.
According to the driver, he became aware of a problem when the passengers started tapping on the privacy glass to catch his attention. Blaring party music made communication difficult, and so it took him a moment to react to their complaints of smoke in the back compartment. He eased out of the traffic stream, parked on the shoulder, and helped several women exit the vehicle via the opened partition. Tragically, the conflagration took mere seconds to reach uncontrollable levels, and the remaining passengers could not be rescued.
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