Hertz Corp. vehicles previously rented by U.S. Secret Service agents burst into flames at Nantucket Memorial Airport early Monday morning, according to several media reports.
The large fire involved five vehicles that had been rented to the Secret Service for President Joe Biden’s visit to Nantucket for Thanksgiving, the Secret Service said. Local fire officials said the fire was not suspicious, although the incident sparked national conspiracy theories, Forbes reported on Wednesday.
Investigators are focusing on a white Ford Expedition as the ignition for the fire, although the official cause is undetermined.
In a statement released Thursday, the Secret Service said:
“The Secret Service had rented the vehicles for the President’s trip and dropped the SUVs off at HERTZ on Sunday night. We were made aware of one Ford SUV catching fire early Monday morning. That SUV was parked next to several other vehicles which also caught fire becasue of the proximity to the Ford SUV.
“We had no issues when we drove the vehicles and they were returned without incident. The Ford SUV that caught fire was a Secret Service support vehicle and not used to transport any protectees. We look forward to following up with local fire authorities on their review of the incident.”
Airport staff spotted the fire in the rental car overflow area at around 5:22 a.m. via the airport’s closed-circuit television system, according to a statement from the airport. Staff activated an alert system and responded to the fire alongside Nantucket firefighters and police officers.
