Bloomington shuttle buses destroyed by fire

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WISH) – Firefighters in Bloomington are investigating an earlier morning fire Wednesday that left several buses charred.

Initial reports from Indiana State Police in Bloomington indicated a fire started around midnight near the Minton Body Shop, which is located at 3210 Venture Boulevard, on the west side of Bloomington.

Police say about six buses caught fire outside the business. Next door, at 3200 Venture Blvd., is the corporate headquarters for GO Express Travel, a shuttle service that operates around Indiana and the Chicagoland area.

According to a press release from the company, a parked and unattended 24 passenger shuttle bus stored at their headquarters developed an electrical short, which started the fire.

Officials say flames spread to four other parked shuttle buses before firefighters with the Bloomington Township Fire Department were able to extinguish the fire.

There were no passengers or staff there at the time of the fire, which happened outside the hours of operation for those shuttle buses, officials said.

The company owns and operates more than 65 vehicles and employs 145 drivers with operations in Bloomington and Indianapolis.