ROLL UP, ROLL UP

Abandoned Ringling Bros. Circus Train Goes Up in Mysterious Flames

At least four of the nine railroad cars, dating back more than half a century, were destroyed in the blaze.

It’s probably too soon to say, but for our money: Ghost clowns did it. A decommissioned set of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus rail cars housed in a remote stretch of the North Carolina woods went up in an unexplained early morning blaze on Thursday, according to officials. Lying just outside Spring Hope’s town limits, the nine rail cars were “inaccessible,” according to the Nash County Sheriff’s Office, though a spokesperson added that an investigation was ongoing. At least four of the nine cars were destroyed in the fire, local outlets WRAL and WITN reported, with WRAL describing how the train’s “Greatest Show on Earth” faded logos could still be glimpsed through the smoke and soot. The cars had been bought by the state’s transportation department in 2017, according to the Associated Press, with the intent to refurbish them for passenger service. Plans soon changed, however, and the train was auctioned off and sent to Nash County for storage. Though Ringling Bros. only ended performances in 2017—a year after the company, facing immense public pressure, stopped using their iconic elephants—the affected rail cars reportedly date back to the 1960s.