It is believed that a battery explosion at Valencia’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo triggered the loud blast that was heard coming from the Williams garage, which supplies Formula E teams with batteries.
An enormous fire broke out during Tuesday’s Formula E preseason test at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia. The fire broke within the Williams garage, which supplies batteries to Formula E teams, following a loud bang. However, the cause of the fire is currently a mystery.
The blaze resulted in one victim, a man, who was soon transferred to the medical facility for evaluation after appearing to have suffered burns and smoke inhalation. However, he is thought to have escaped serious injury.
The fire is believed to have been sparked by a battery taken from the DS Penske car piloted by rookie Robert Schwartzman, despite the fact that it was initially supposed to have been brought on by a new fast charging technology.
The DS car that was associated with Schwartzman had been retrieved earlier after it had broken down as the morning action was underway.
Team members could be seen escaping the garages while yelling “get out, get out” as the fire, which was likely started by a battery explosion spread. Firefighters rushed to the scene, but they were unable to put out the massive black smoke clouds that were engulfing the neighborhood.
There were over 3,000 Formula E employees, teams, and journalists present on the first day of the Formula E preseason test. The cars were driven back to their garages as the fire started during the first three-hour practice session on the track.
A statement from Formula E said: “In a break between practice sessions, a fire was detected in the pit lane and garage area which has been contained.
“The on-track Incident Response Team acted immediately to contain the incident while the main pit building and garages were quickly evacuated.
“One person has been assessed by medics and has been transported to hospital for precautionary checks.
“Formula E, the FIA and local fire authorities are investigating the cause and will provide a further update in due course.”
Formula E has since confirmed the afternoon session has been suspended as the investigation is under way. The afternoon test was originally scheduled to start at 2 PM local time.
More information about the remaining preseason test is anticipated to be released soon.
