A 2002 Ford Expedition parked in a homeowners carport is suspected as the cause of a fire in Madison County, Ohio that killed a woman and her two children.
The Columbus Dispatch reported that the origin of the fire has been narrowed to a 10-foot space in the carport although investigators have not yet determined the cause.
Peter Romans, who survived the fire that killed his wife and children, told investigators that the fire started in his parked Ford SUV, according to the news paper.
The fire killed Billi Romans, 51; Ami Romans, 16; and Caleb Romans, 12. Their bodies were found near the back door of their house,
Peter Romans, 47, escaped with minor burns and smoke inhalation.
The 2001 Ford Expedition suspected of igniting the fatal blaze was included in the Ford Motor Company recall of 9.6 million vehicles equipped with a faulty cruise-control switch. the switch can lead to a vehicle fire at any time, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The Ford recall began in 2005. It has dragged on because of the sheer size of the recall effort, a shortage of parts and a lack of urgency by regulators.
Several dwelling fires have been attributed to the faulty cruise-control switch which can overheat and erupt into flames.
After years of fires involving Ford vehicles, NHTSA on February 28 warned Ford, Lincoln and Mercury owners of fire hazards involving the faulty cruise control switches in recalled Ford vehicles that have not been repaired.
ConsumerAffairs.com has been reporting on the problem for years, chronicling fires in vehicles parked outside homes, in garages and even at fire stations.
In a strongly worded and highly unusual statement, NHTSA urged owners of the recalled vehicles to go to a Ford or Lincoln Mercury dealer as soon as possible and have the potentially dangerous cruise control system disconnected.
The recalled vehicles are:
1. 1993 2004 F150
2. 1993 1999 F250 (gasoline engine)
3. 1993 1996 Bronco
4. 1994 1996 Econoline
5. 1997 2002 Ford Expedition
6. 1998 2002 Lincoln Navigator
7. 1998 2002 Ford Ranger
8. 1992 1998 Ford Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Car
9. 1993 1998 Lincoln Mark VIII
10. 1993 1995 Ford Taurus SHO with automatic transmission
11. 1994 Mercury Capri
12. 1998 2001 Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer
13. 2001 2002 Ford Explorer Sport and Explorer Sport Trac
14. 1992 1993 and 1997 2003 Ford E-150-350 gasoline or natural gas vehicles
15. 2002 E-550 gasoline engine vehicles
16. 1996 2003 E-450 gasoline or natural gas vehicles
17. 1994 2002 F-250 through F-550 super Duty trucks (gasoline engine)
18. 2000 2002 Ford Excursion (gasoline engine)
19. 2003 F250 F550 Super Duty, Ford Excursion
20. 1995 2002 Ford F53 Motor home chassis
21. 2002 2003 Lincoln Blackwood
"Failure to have the switch disconnected could lead to a vehicle fire at any time, whether or not the key is in the ignition, and whether or not owners use the cruise control system," NHTSA warned in the consumer advisory.
Ford is once again preparing to notify the owners of the affected vehicles to have the switch disconnected until it can be repaired, according to NHTSA.
Fatal fires allegedly caused by the defective switch have led to wrongful death lawsuits against Ford by several vehicle owners.
5 million time bombs
NHTSA reported that approximately five million vehicles have been repaired so far, leaving almost five million passenger cars and light trucks with the faulty switches intact, and in danger of catching fire at any time without warning.
The firestorm of Ford trucks erupting into flames has devastated Ford truck owners across the country.
The Ford inferno hit a homeowner in Chisago City, Minnesota in January when her 2000 Ford Expedition started on fire parked in our attached garage. We have now lost everything we owned, wrote the Ford Expedition owner. The home we built not even 2 years ago burned to the ground, she said.
Another Ford truck went up in flames in Westminster, California on January 22. This homeowner is fortunate. He lost only his Ford truck and not his house as well.
A Ford spokesman told ConsumerAffairs.com in February that the automaker was doing all it can to complete the fire hazard recall.
This was a large recall, and we're working with the supplier to meet the volume challenge as soon as possible, the Ford executive told ConsumerAffair.Com.
Ford concedes a parts shortage is delaying repairs of the fire prone cruise control system in the recalled vehicles until later in 2008.
As a short-term solution, Ford offers to disconnect the cruise control system in recalled vehicles until parts are available to complete the repair.
Some Ford dealers now require customers who decline to disconnect the cruise control system to sign a waiver of liability.
With just more than half of the fire-prone Fords repaired, the automaker insisted the company is responding adequately in an effort to notify Ford customers to return their vehicles to a Ford dealership for repair of the fire hazard.
We have sent multiple mailings to customers, based on current vehicle registrations, asking them to bring in vehicles. We have one of the highest return rates in the industry, based on update registration info, and sending multiple mailings, a Ford spokesman told ConsumerAffairs.com.
Too late
But the warnings and recall notices have come too late for many Ford owners.
• A Vidor, Texas man saw his mother's truck burning out of control less than a week after federal safety regulators issued the consumer advisory.
I heard a loud BOOM and then horns going off. I thought it was a wreck. When I looked outside a large gulf of flames was burning dangerously close to the house and truck, he said. We kept the flames from hitting the house until fire department got there.
The outrageous -- but common -- story of Ford vehicles catching fire was reported over and again throughout the country in February as NHTSA talked and worried in internal agency meetings about whether to issue the consumer advisory.
• On February 27 in Granite City, Illinois, the day before the NHTSA warning, a 2001 Ford F150 burned.
I was awakened by 2 small booms about a minute apart. I got up to check things out to find my 2001 F150 in the driveway fully engulfed in flames as well as my boat parked about 15 feet away beginning to burn, the Illinois truck owner reported. The truck, boat, contents, asphalt driveway are total losses, he said.
• A day later in Monticello, Florida a Ford F150 burned in a shopping center parking lot while the owner was inside a store.
• In early February in Fairview, New Mexico a 1997 Ford F150 burst into flames. We heard a loud boom which caused the dogs to start barking, the truck owner said. When the Monticello fire department arrived 30 minutes later the truck was still burning.
• An Orange Park, Florida Ford owner reported February 9 that his 1999 Lincoln Navigator caught fire and was destroyed.
• On February 9 a 1999 Ford Explorer caught fire in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.
I had just parked at a Burger King for lunch. The truck caught fire minutes after I enter the restaurant, the owner said. The truck was fully engulfed when firefighters finally put out the fire. I am grateful no one was in the vehicle at the time but I am out the only truck I owned.
The Rhode Island Explorer owner told ConsumerAffairs.com that he was not aware of the recall issued in issued on August 2007 and said he was never notified of the important recall even though he had owned the vehicle for many years.
• On February 4, a Ford F150 Lariat caught fire in Virginia Beach, Virginia, even though the cruise control switch was previously repaired under the terms of the August recall.
• In Alta Loma, California a ConsumerAffairs.com reader found his Ford truck on fire while eating lunch at home. Surprisingly every Ford rep was extremely rude and acted as though it's my problem not theirs, this Ford truck owner reported.
• On January 22, a Ford Expedition XLT caught fire in Westminster California.
After driving the vehicle for approximately 20 minutes it was parked in the driveway, the owner said. Approximately 1 hour later the engine compartment was on fire and became engulfed within minutes. Fortunately the vehicle was not in the garage.
Ford truck and SUV owners wanting more information about the fire danger in their vehicle or the recall may contact Ford at 1-800-392-3673 or NHTSA 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153).
