Wedding party receives police escort after limo catches fire in Halifax

CTV Atlantic: Limo goes up in flames A Halifax wedding party received a police escort to the reception after their limo caught fire Saturday. CTV's Emily Baron Cadloff explains.

A wedding party travelled to their reception in an unexpected mode of transportation on Saturday after their first option went up in flames.

The group stopped at the Public Gardens in Halifax to take photos when they found their limousine on fire.

“A lady tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘I think your car is on fire,’ and I kind of laughed at her,” says groomsman Roland Pirker. “Then she pointed and we looked and saw the smoke.”

The limo was completely destroyed, but luckily everyone got out safely.

“I’m pretty overwhelmed, but I'm not sure if it's what happened or the day in general,” says the groom, Phil Mabley.

The Halifax Fire Department says they got the call just before 2 p.m. and along with police, quickly closed down the street.

“We turned the corner and we could see the smoke, pulled over and ran an inch and three quarter attack line, and extinguished the fire,” says Cpt. Darren Jones of Halifax Fire.

The cause of the fire has yet to be determined.

“Vehicle fires are very difficult to determine that,” says Cpt. Jones. “Everything is burnt, everything is toast.”

Despite the rough start to the day, the wedding party was in good spirits, cracking jokes and calmly taking photos.

“I think we were just looking too good. That's what it was,” says Roland Parker.

Following the fire, the whole wedding party received a police escort to their reception.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Emily Baron Cranston.