In home underground garage

Hybrid car battery triggered inferno of flames

Three cars were completely burnt out and other vehicles were damaged.(Bild: Zeitungsfoto.at)

After the fire in the underground parking garage of a residential home in Innsbruck in the early hours of Sunday morning, in which three cars completely burned out, the police have now been able to clarify the cause. A defect in a hybrid car is likely to have triggered the inferno.

On Sunday, shortly before 5.30 a.m., a fire broke out in the underground parking garage of the residential and care home complex in Innsbruck's Technikerstraße. "Three cars parked there burned out completely. Other vehicles were slightly damaged or contaminated by the heat and the massive deposits of soot particles," said the police at the time.

Cause of fire now clarified
In the course of the investigation, the probable cause of the fire has now been clarified. "According to the current state of knowledge, a technical defect in the area of a high-voltage battery of a hybrid-powered vehicle is assumed," said the investigators on Tuesday.

No evacuation initiated
During the firefighting operation at the time, "no evacuation had to be initiated", it was reported at the weekend. No one was injured. The exact amount of damage is also still unclear - but it is likely to be considerable.