Disneyland Fire Closes Part of Park, Injures 4

A fire at a Disneyland attraction Friday caused four minor injuries and forced the closure of the Tomorrowland section of the park for about 90 minutes.

About 15 Anaheim firefighters and several Disneyland employees quickly extinguished the fire, which broke out about 9 a.m. in an empty car of the People Mover attraction, authorities said.

Four Disneyland employees suffered smoke inhalation while trying to put out the fire. About 30 people were on the ride at the time, but all escaped injury.

Park visitors had to be evacuated from Tomorrowland because of the fire. Employees from a nearby Disneyland administrative office building also were evacuated.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but preliminary evidence indicated that it was an electrical problem inside the People Mover, said Ray Martin, assistant chief of Disneyland’s own fire department.

John McClintock, a spokesman for Disneyland, said the People Mover is a “continuance transportation” attraction that has been touring Tomorrowland for about 25 years. The car that caught fire was in the Tron Tunnel section of the ride when smoke was first noticed.

McClintock said that the park’s safety equipment was activated by the smoke and that the ride was immediately shut down. A sprinkler system was also activated by the smoke.

The people who were on the ride at the time of the fire were escorted off. The closest park guests to the fire were two cars away, McClintock said.

There were no immediate damage estimates. And no estimate of the number of people in the park at the time was given.

At least half a dozen popular attractions were closed because of the fire. All rides except the People Mover were reopened about 90 minutes later.

The People Mover will remain closed until the cause of the fire is discovered and corrected, park officials said.

“It seems to have been a minor fire,” McClintock said. He added that there were no complaints from any of the park’s visitors.