Electric or fossil fuels?

Which drive poses the greatest fire risk

This hybrid station wagon burned down in Wolfern on Sunday.(Bild: Matthias Lauber/laumat.at)

On Sunday, a hybrid vehicle burst into flames in Wolfern in Upper Austria for unknown reasons. Much has already been reported about the fire risk of electric cars. But do electric cars actually pose a greater risk, or are classic combustion engines more dangerous? 

"A local resident alerted us when he saw a car on fire on a country lane at the edge of the forest," explains Bernhard Schaubeder, commander of the Lambrechten fire brigade. "When we arrived, the car was on fire and there was no driver in sight. At first we thought it was an electric car." However, when the flames were extinguished, a diesel engine was discovered.