Connect Transit bus catches fire at CIRA

Posted on January 4, 2017

By Patrick Baron

BLOOMINGTON – A Connect Transit bus caught fire Wednesday at the Central Illinois Regional Airport.

The 40-foot bus had taken its scheduled route to the airport before the driver and passengers left the bus. Deputy Director of Marketing for CIRA Fran Strebing said airport employees then heard a loud boom and saw the bus engulfed in flames, and called 911.

No injuries were reported.

Connect Transit spokeswoman Melissa Chrisman said the cause of the fire was a mechanical malfunction on the bus that’s nearly 20 years old. Chrisman added this incident is the only major mechanical malfunction in more than 10 years.

Patrick Baron can be reached at [email protected].

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