Mary Valley Rattler GM Linda Barry speaks on train carriage fire| Video

Iconic Gympie tourist train boss Linda Barry has opened up about the ‘devastating’ loss in Wednesday’s mysterious fire, which came within inches of becoming a ‘catastrophe’. Watch the video:

The destruction of two historic timber train carriages that were gutted by fire at the Mary Valley Rattler tracks in the heart of Gympie on Wednesday has been called “devastating” for the tourist venture.

Rattler GM Linda Barry was among the first to spot the blaze as she was finishing work about 5.15pm on Wednesday.

Mrs Barry said she caught sight of the smoke and flames as she was driving out of the car park.

The carriages were already “pretty well engulfed” at that point.

She called 000 and the Rattler’s own emergency rescue crew started working to control the fire while QFES rushed to the scene.

Fireys were then at the scene for more than two hours, first battling the blaze in an effort to keep it from spreading to nearby carriages and then damping down the embers once it was under control.

They were forced to cut holes in the two carriages as the fire crept through their roofs.

A patch of grass between the carriages and another rail line also caught fire, but firefighters were able to keep the flames from spreading to carriages on the nearby line.

Scorch marks on the ground from the blaze revealed it went within inches of spreading further.

“They were amazing,” Mrs Barry said.

The fire gutted the two carriages but emergency service workers were able to keep it from spreading to other carriages nearby.

Mrs Barry said nothing was stored near the carriages that could have sparked the blaze, and that it was “most likely” deliberately lit.

Police said they were treating the fire as suspicious “until determined otherwise”.

“Investigations are continuing,” they said.

Mrs Barry said the loss of the carriages, which were not being used by the tourism venture at the time, was “devastating”.

With funding the two gutted carriages could have been restored to working order, she said.

There has been a history of vandalism at the station since it was resurrected by Gympie Regional Council in 2017.

In January 2018 19 pieces of rolling stock, including carriages, were covered in graffiti which destroyed hundreds of hours-worth of volunteer restoration work.

Emergency services were called to the Mary Valley Rattler station off Tozer St after reports of a blaze in one of the carriages. Photo: Scott Kovacevic

Two years later, in January 2020, vandals were caught on CCTV at the station knocking over air conditioning units, throwing bins across the platform and moving plants.

In September 2020, a 23-year-old Gympie man appeared in court after being caught on CCTV vandalising two carriages, two benches and a windowsill in May of that year.

He pleaded guilty to the graffiti offence and was fined $500.

Police said during the court hearing they thought the damage had been repaired by Rattler volunteers.

Mrs Barry said vandalism at the station was an ongoing burden its staff and volunteers were forced to deal with.

Originally published as Mary Valley Rattler GM Linda Barry speaks on train carriage fire| Video