Fire Destroys 650 Motorcycles at Museum
Wed September 17, 2003 08:33 AM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Up to 650 vintage motorcycles worth millions of
pounds have been destroyed in a fire at a museum in central England,
fire officials said on Wednesday. More than 100 firefighters tackled the
blaze, which destroyed part of the National Motorcycle Museum near
Birmingham, England's second city.
Television pictures showed plumes of black smoke rising high above the
museum, which traces the history of British motorcycle manufacturing.

A West Midlands Fire Service spokeswoman said the cause of Tuesday's
fire was not yet known. Newspapers said the damage was estimated at
eight million pounds ($12.75 million). There were no injuries in the
fire.

The museum displays rare motorcycles from 1904, including classics from
British manufacturers Triumph, Norton and BSA.


--
The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that
English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words;
on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.
--James D. Nicoll