Update: A police report from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department states that they have arrested 45-year-old Demarcus McCloud in connection with Wednesday's bus fire.
McCloud has been preliminarily charged with two counts of arson, with damage more than $5,000, a Level Four felony, and one count of arson endangering human life, a Level 4 felony.
Original Story:
INDIANAPOLIS -- An IndyGo Red Line bus caught fire at a near northside bus station Wednesday morning. IndyGo officials believe a passenger started it.
According to IndyGo, the bus caught fire next to the station at Meridian and 38th Streets at around 7:10 a.m. on Wednesday. Officials said all passengers on board were safely evacuated "thanks to the quick actions of the bus driver."
The Indianapolis Fire Department was then called. IndyGo officials said early eyewitnesses reported that a passenger reportedly started the fire. An investigation into the incident is underway.
The department said that the fire was brought under control in 10 minutes. The driver of the bus told firefighters that there were four people on the bus, including him, and all were evacuated.
The driver told the department that he noticed smoke inside the bus and pulled the bus to a stop to evacuate all the occupants. Two passengers were taken to a local hospital with "slight injuries."
Employees at a nearby McDonald's said they watched as police detained a man at the gas station next door. IMPD reports show a 45-year-old man named Demarcus McCloud was arrested in relation to the bus fire. He was preliminarily charged with two counts of arson.
The Indianapolis Fire Department said that the estimated damage to the bus and the shelter is around $2 million. The exact cause of the incident remains under investigation.
Drivers passing by when the fire started just after 7 Wednesday morning stopped to stare at the blaze. Mark Martinez was one of those drivers, stopping his car to take this video of the fully engulfed bus.
”It was terrible, it was just billowing out like an inferno," Martinez said. "It just caught fire so quickly."
Martinez said he saw people get out of the bus after the smoke had started and just minutes before the fire fully engulfed it.
”It took you back because you just don't expect to see anything like that," he said. "But it was huge, I had never witnessed anything like that close up."
Neighbors at a nearby apartment complex watched smoke rise up to their windows. Many telling us they woke up to such a strong smell, they thought something was burning in their own homes.
”My daughter actually woke me up this morning and she said, 'Mom, Mom it's raining ash,'" said Andra, who lives nearby. "And I said, 'What?' I got up and looked out the window and that's when I noticed the bus was on fire."
Both directions of Meridian Street south of 38th Street were closed for about five hours this morning as crews cleaned up the scene and hauled off the bus. The IndyGo bus station at 38th Street was reopened later Wednesday. IndyGo said it does not expect any slowdowns on the RedLine because of the bus fire.
"IndyGo is pleased to learn a person has been detained in connection with a bus fire that happened this morning along the Red Line at 38th and Meridian streets," An IndyGo statement read. "A joint investigation including IndyGo, the Indianapolis Fire Department, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is underway."
The ATF is now handling the investigation.
"We encourage riders to use the MyStop app to plan their trips around the detour," officials said. "No further details are available at this time."
IndyGo Interim President and CEO Jennifer Pyrz shared the following statement with FOX59/CBS4:
“The safety of our riders and teammates is always our top priority. We’d like to take this opportunity to applaud our coach operator who did everything right and followed ‘See Something, Say Something’ operator training. As a result, he quickly jumped to action, ensuring riders got off the bus quickly and with no major injuries, likely saving lives today.”