Neil Young Blames Hybrid For San Carlos Warehouse Fire
SAN CARLOS (KCBS / AP / BCN) ― A fire at a San Carlos warehouse where legendary singer-songwriter Neil Young stored memorabilia started in a vintage car that the singer had converted into a hybrid vehicle in a much publicized project to promote fuel-efficiency, authorities said Tuesday.
Belmont-San Carlos Fire Marshal Jim Palisi said the Nov. 9 fire that caused about $1.1 million in damage began in Young's 1959 Lincoln Continental convertible - which was converted to a zero-emissions, plug-in vehicle - and spread to the entire warehouse.
Young blamed the fire on human error and said he and his team were committed to rebuilding the car.
"It appears to be an operator error that occurred in an untested part of the charging system," Young said in a statement released to the media Tuesday. "The wall charging system was not completely tested and had never been left unattended. A mistake was made. It was not the fault of the car."
KCBS' Holly Quan Reports:
Fire crews were able to save about 70 percent of the 10,000-square-foot building's contents, including other vintage cars, guitars and framed photos belonging to Young.
The blaze caused an estimated $850,000 in damage to Young's possessions and damaged the car, dubbed the LincVolt. The building suffered another $250,000 in damage, Palisi said.
No one was injured.
Young had converted the car to run on batteries and a biodiesel-powered generator as part of a project to create the world's most efficient full-size vehicle.
The white, 20-foot long, 5,000-pound car's journey from gas guzzler to hybrid was chronicled on the website LincVolt.com and in a four-part film series. The website also allowed people to track the vehicle's vital statistics, including its speed, on its various trips.
Young said a computer in the vehicle "may function like a 'black box'" that can provide data about what caused the blaze. He said his team was removing the computer and sending it to a lab for inspection.
Young's statement also thanked the Belmont-San Carlos Fire Department for its efforts in saving valuable memorabilia and other items in the warehouse.
"A lot of archival items were threatened, and the fire department did a first-class job protecting them," Young said. "We are lucky to have these professionals in our area."
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