The latest version of the Ontario Road Safety Annual Report (ORSAR) in from 2021 and this is reports collision data that is almost 4 years old. Yet it is the only document that can hold the Government of Ontario accountable for its road safety actions. When new developments arise that affect the public’s safety government data cannot be reliable when it is reporting old data. The issue of vehicle fires is one that is becoming more important and this demonstrates how the Government of Ontario is not properly informing the public able this growing incidence.
Background
Looking back at previous publications of the ORSAR we can see how the government has reported the numbers of vehicle fires as shown in the table below.
We have previously reported that the actual incidence of vehicle fires is higher as demonstrated by the small sample of fire articles that we are able to track from news media reports. That data is shown below.
The graphic shown above is likely a large under-estimate of the actual numbers of vehicle fires occurring because we have limited resources in keeping track of these incidents. The large jump in reports of vehicle fires that is shown after 2015 is likely because we started to become more diligent in tracking news media reports of fires. Yet comparing what is shown in the ORSAR there is an obvious under-reporting of collision fires, even though the news media data are themselves under-estimates of the true incidence.
Data from the latest ORSAR (2021) is shown in the two figures below.
Once again it can be seen that the ORSAR contains a category for “Fire/Explosion” and here we see that there was only one incident of a death, one incident of a personal injury, and 61 incidents of property damage.
Indisputable evidence contradicts what is reported in the ORSAR.
Examples of Fatal and Critical Injury Collisions Involving Collision Fires
As an example, on August 13, 2021 a driver was killed when his vehicle rear-ended a stopped, disabled transport truck on Hwy 401 near Keele Street. The only official announcement was that the vehicle caught fire and the driver died.
Another fatal collision occurred on August 7, 2021 on Blyth Road west of Goderich, Ontario. a single vehicle struck a tree and caught fire. The vehicle was “fully engulfed” by fire.
In another example, a collision occurred at an undisclosed location on a Perth Road near Milverton. New media reported that a person had died at the scene but neither police nor news media reported that a fire had taken place. The only indication of the fire was that a photo was provided by a passerby and included in the news report – That photo showed heavy smoke engulfing a vehicle.
In another example, a fatal collision occurred on June 24, 2021 where a vehicle rear-ended a transport truck on Hwy 400 near the Finch Ave exit. Paramedics indicated that a person was pronounced dead at the scene and police reported that “one” of the vehicles had caught fire.
In another example, a collision occurred on June 17, 2021 near Uxbridge Concession Rod 6 and Ashworth Road. It was reported that a pick-up truck rear-ended a stopped dump truck and the pick-up caught fire. The driver of the pick-up truck was killed.
In another example. an incident occurred on May 8, 2021 on Burnhamthorpe Road and Promontory Crescent in Mississauga, where initial reports did not indicate that a collision occurred, only that a single vehicle travelled off the roadway and caught fire. Subsequently it was reported that a Ferrari sports car had struck a lamp standard and there were reports by witnesses of very large “fireball”. Two persons in the vehicle were reportedly killed.
In another example, police arrived near Howden and Harmony Roads in Oshawa on October 24, 2021 where they located a 2021 Honda Civic that had struck a tree and was engulfed in flames. The lone driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
In another example, on July 7, 2021 a vehicle rolled over and burst into flames outside the Kia car dealership on the Queensway in Toronto. A last report one occupant of the vehicle was in critical condition.
In another example, on January 1, 2021, three vehicles were involved in a collision at the intersection of Wilson Ave and Keels Street in Toronto. One of the vehicles rolled over and caught fire. Officials reported that one person sustained critical injuries but it was not revealed which vehicle that occupant came from.
In another example, on June 29, 2021, police discovered a burning vehicle on the outskirts of Sudbury and they discovered a body in the vehicle. Minimal information was made available with respect to what kind of incident was involved.
In another example, on August 11, 2021, a two-vehicle collision occurred at the intersection of Wonderland Road and Glanworth Drive in South London. One of the vehicles caught fire and an occupant was reported to have sustained fatal injuries. A second occupant sustained life-threatening injuries.
In another example, on December 21, 2021, vehicle struck a backhoe at a construction site on Dundonald Road in Glencoe Ontario. The vehicle then burst into flames and the driver was reportedly killed.
Summary
In summary these are 12 examples where 10 fatalities occurred and 2 persons sustained life-threatening injuries. This evidence is indisputable that fatalities and fires exist that are not being reported in official Ontario statistics such as the ORSAR . In a number of these incidents officials appeared to be lax about confirming whether the fatalities were related to the fires. And this is typical of what is taking place whenever a collision fire is involved. Behind this small list of fatal collisions there is a very large number of injury collisions where fires are involved but are not being reported. And there are even a much larger number of incidents where vehicle fires are not reported because injuries were either minor did not occur.
All this information is based on 4-year-old data because the Province of Ontario has not provided any newer statistics about what is happening now. And that should raise an alarm.
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