By Blake Haas
NORMAL – A vehicle fire inside Rivian Automotive remains under investigation after the vehicle caught fire late Friday night.
According to a news release, Normal Firefighters responded to the plant just after 9 p.m. at 100 N. Rivian Motorway for a report of a vehicle on fire inside the plant.
Once inside, NFD firefighters found a vehicle on fire on a vehicle life on the plant’s northwest side.
Matt Swaney, the NFD Spokesman, said a fire sprinkler above the vehicle was flowing water and was suppressing the fire.
In addition, firefighters connected a hose line to the standpipe system inside the pant and finished extinguishing the fire.
“The sprinkler system did exactly what it was supposed to do – put water on the fire quickly and prevent it from spreading until the fire department arrived to finish the job.” Swaney added. “Most importantly, the damage was limited to just the one vehicle, and everyone was able to get out of the building safely.”
Due to the size of the building, the Bloomington Fire Department was called initially to assist. At the same time, off-duty Normal firefighters staffed stations and managed calls elsewhere in town during the incident.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, and there is no damage estimate available.
Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].
