A vehicle bursting into flames during an accident rarely occurs unless there was excessive speeding, said Rawle Mahabir, vice-president of the T&T Automobile Association, yesterday. He explained speeding can cause an impact which could result in a gas tank rupturing or gaslines bursting, leading to a gas leak. Mahabir said: “When this happens there may be sparks, caused by crashing metal, a fire is ignited and this is how an explosion occurs. “But this rarely happens unless there is excessive speeding.” His comments came in light of the death of three men during a fiery accident yesterday.

Their deaths come four days after six-year-old Christopher Ramkhalawan was burnt to death after the car, driven by his father, crashed over a bridge on Caroni River and caught afire. His father survived. Maharaj’s views on such an accident occurring were echoed by Larry Harper, service manager at the automobile repair company, Laughlin and De Gannes Ltd. He said several factors may result in a vehicular explosion, including a fuel leak or electrical problem caused by the crash, but noted that impact would have to be “pretty severe” for that to occur.