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There was a bit of excitement at the Niagara Falls International Rainbow Bridge on November 22. A speeding car caught a good bit of air and exploded. Security camera footage was released showing the vehicle going airborne but the explosion was off camera. Widespread initial reaction was that it had been a terrorist attack. Governor Kathy Hochul said the car was “basically incinerated” in the crash.
It wasn’t long before the terrorism angle was walked back. The occupants had been an older couple who weren’t suspicious, and the car was a new Bentley Flying Spur, costing ~ $300K. It wasn’t what one would expect for a terrorist attack. Mechanical failure, specifically a stuck accelerator, has been speculated.
Occasionally, I have an original thought. I wondered if the car was an EV. It turns out the Bentley Flying Spur offers a choice of “three powertrains: a 4.0 litre V8, a 6.0 litre W12 or a 2.9 litre V6 hybrid.”
A hybrid? Could the explosion and fire have been generated by an EV battery? (Asked in my best mysterious reality show narrator voice)
If anyone knows they haven’t said, but I finally saw someone ask the question here:
It's possible, although we have no information emerging from the investigation and likely will not be apprised of the relevant facts, that we may be dealing with the sort of blast and combustion associated with the inflammable and unstable components of an EV battery.
This story has gotten pretty quiet. I wonder if we will ever learn the results of the accident investigation.
Discussion (35)
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Interesting question on the power train. If in fact it was the hybrid, that data point will be smothered until it stops breathing.
This is another of those stories that has seemed to disappear almost immediately, because it didn't fit the preferred narrative.
Being curious, I would like to know, as Paul Harvey used to say: "the rest of the story".
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the driver and occupant were both 53.
Is 53 the new "elderly"?
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It's possible. Early-onset etc. Also if it was a pretty new acquisition they may not have been used to it.
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Are you suggesting early-onset age. Premature superannuation?
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