Snowmobile catches fire during refueling

photo Stevens LeBlanc
Daniel Jacques shows what remains of his snowmobile after it is stirred while it was full of petrol at a service station in Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon.

Jean-François Racine

Thursday, 15 February, 2018 00:00

UPDATE
Thursday, 15 February, 2018 00:00

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A snowmobile driver has had a narrow escape when its engine is literally ignited at the moment of refueling.

The video captured by a surveillance camera shows a blaze of instant near the pumps of a service station. You can also catch a glimpse of a man walking away very quickly with a part of his clothes on fire. Other witnesses fled before an intense black smoke only emanates from the site.

Even if his wounds are superficial, the victim has had quite a scare. The incident occurred last February 9 in Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon, south of Quebec city.

“Explosion “

“I don’t know what happened, but I would have been able to go there and not be able to tell. The engine was turned off and there was an explosion, ” says Daniel James.

Fortunately, the old man of 50 years was not burned severely, but the machine is a total loss.

“I’m still alive. I just finished my exit to Saint-Lambert and I had filled three or four times in the day. It went boom and I ran in the fire. “

The snowmobile, MXZ X 1200 BRP, is rather recent, since it is a 2015 model, according to its owner.

“I’ll certainly send a message to the manufacturer. I have a client who has experienced the same thing in Saint-Gervais two weeks ago, ” adds Mr. James.

Precautions

An investigation is underway and the charred ruins will be examined. A mechanical failure or a slight spill on a hot piece could have caused the disaster.

“We can’t comment on this specific incident. We strongly encourage all snowmobilers to follow the guidelines of filling in safe as specified in the manual of use, ” said Sylvain Larocque, a spokesman for Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP).

Elsewhere, a similar incident happened in 2014 in The Doré, in the Lac-Saint-Jean. A snowmobile driver who was refueling his car saw flames gushing out, and his vehicle was charred.