By Angelina Nunez
A fire sparked on the Purple Line the night of Oct. 29 as crews conducted live-wire testing on the tracks.
Prince George’s County Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department responded to the “small smoldering” fire just before 9 p.m. at the intersection of Campus Drive and Regents Drive, according to the department’s press information officer, Michael Yourishin.
Yourishin told Stories Beneath the Shell the fire was minor and said the department had no reason to send more than one unit.
“This was not a major deal for us,” said Yourishin. “It was a very, very small fire.”
The nature of the electrical fire prevented the crew from putting it out with water, so they waited for Maryland Transit Administration MTA personnel to shut off the power and extinguish it, Yourishin said. The fire crew remained at the scene until they confirmed the fire was gone.
“The only thing interesting about it was that it was on the Purple Line tracks,” Yourishin said.
The fire broke along one of the most heavily traveled stretches of the project. Running directly through the center of campus, Campus Drive serves as a route for thousands of walking students, vehicle traffic and shuttle buses.
Live-wire testing was necessary to evaluate the performance of the electrical systems, the lines’ track safety and stability and overall system functionality according to MTA.
The developer of the light rail, Maryland Transit Solutions, alerted MTA of the fire Thursday night, Purple Line Communications Director Kathryn Lamb said in a statement.
Emergency protocols worked as planned and no injuries were reported, according to the release.
“I was wondering whether it would delay construction on the Purple Line just because, after all the construction delays, that’s kind of what I expect at this point,” said junior biochemistry major Elise Adkins.
Though the project originally broke ground in August 2017 and was scheduled to open in spring 2022, the project has faced years of setbacks, pushing the opening to winter 2027, according to MTA.
Legal battles, rising costs, a change of construction contractors and conflicts with already-in-place utility lines that required relocation caused the significant delay.
It is still unknown if the fire caused further delays to the opening of the Purple Line as MTA’s investigation remains ongoing, according to the release.
Featured Image: Site of the Purple Line fire at the corner of Campus Dr and Regents Dr. Photo by Audrey Bengtson.