Two timber train carriages were all but destroyed in a fire which police are currently treating as suspicious at the historic Gympie Railway Station last week.
The fire broke out on two carriages that were not operational just after 5pm last Wednesday at the Mary Valley Rattler compound and took Queensland Fire and Emergency Service (QFES) personnel and members of the Rattler’s emergency crew a couple of hours to contain, and stop from spreading to other nearby carriages.
According to a QFES spokesman, the fire covered an area approximately 20 metres wide with flames reaching up to two metres high at the height of the blaze.
The inferno also started a grass fire that was one and a half metres wide.
The spokesman said four fire trucks (appliances) attended the scene along with personnel from Queensland Ambulance and Police Services, Queensland Rail and Energex.
Fire investigators said they were treating the fire as suspicious “until determined otherwise” and that investigations were continuing.
It is reported that a spokeswoman for the Rattler has described the loss of the carriages as “devastating“ and that with time and funding they could have been restored prior to the fire.
