Quebec education officials ordered all 1,200 Lion Electric school buses off provincial roads Thursday evening following a fire last week that forced five children and their driver to evacuate, leaving thousands of students without transportation Friday across the province.
The fire broke out Tuesday morning in Montreal when a Lion Electric bus driver noticed smoke coming from heating vents and safely evacuated all passengers before flames engulfed the vehicle. Montreal firefighters confirmed the blaze originated in the bus’s heating system, not its electric battery or drivetrain.
Quebec Education Minister Sonia LeBel and Transport Minister Jonatan Julien said in a joint statement that they ordered the “preventative measure” due to a potential defect that may have caused the fire. School bus operators will inspect all vehicles over the weekend with plans to restore service as quickly as possible.
The incident marks the fourth involving Lion buses since November 2024, according to Transport Canada, which is investigating three fires and one thermal incident across Quebec and Ontario. None of the previous incidents resulted in injuries, and batteries were not involved in any of the fires.
First Student, parent company of the bus operator, said it found a “wiring issue” in the defrosting system and reported the findings to Lion Electric and federal regulators. The company has disabled defrosting systems in more than 200 buses as a temporary safety measure.
The widespread bus removal forced school districts to cancel routes and some to close entirely Friday. The English Montreal School Board suspended more than 70 routes, while two central Quebec school districts canceled classes altogether.
Lion Electric, based in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, has faced significant financial difficulties. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in December and was acquired by Quebec investors in May with plans to focus exclusively on electric school buses manufactured in the province.
Transport Canada said the severity of fire damage in previous incidents has made it difficult for investigators to identify the underlying cause. The federal agency emphasized that school buses remain “the safest means of transporting children to and from school” despite the recent incidents.
The Quebec situation prompted precautionary measures in other provinces. Ontario suspended six Lion diesel buses, while Prince Edward Island announced additional maintenance checks for its 107 Lion buses but kept them in service.
As of Monday, no timeline has been announced for when the Quebec electric buses will return to service.
Lion Electric had planned for buses to gradually return to Quebec roads Monday, but the English Montreal School Board announced Monday that electric buses remain out of service pending continued fleet inspections. The Quebec auto insurance board previously approved the company’s inspection protocols for returning vehicles to service.
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