Bethesda family's SUV combusts in driveway; Nissan opens investigation
FOX 5 EXCLUSIVE - An SUV exploded in a Bethesda driveway, and the owner and his family say they’re fortunate to be alive.
The Hill family is definitely counting their blessings.
If their SUV had been parked inside their garage, it could have been catastrophic and deadly.
The garage is located next to a mud room, which contains the gas line, which means the Hill's single-family house could have exploded.
A time-lapse video recorded from a doorbell camera shows the 2015 Nissan Murano beginning to smoke under the hood, and then suddenly catching on fire in the driveway.
It happened on May 14, around 5:45 Tuesday morning.
The Hills say the fire caused the airbags to explode, waking them up, their five-year-old twins, and their 7-year-old.
When they got out of the house, they called 911.
Firefighters arrived and put out the inferno. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but the SUV owner believes the ABS actuator pump seal caused it.
Nissan has recalled this part in certain vehicles from 2015 to 2019 due to the potential for leakages that could cause electrical problems, and in rare cases, a fire.
Vicki and Philip told FOX 5's Shomari Stone exclusively that they have waited for around a week for Nissan technicians to come to their house.
"At first, we thought someone was breaking in, and we were terrified. When my husband told me that the vehicle was on fire and to call 911, my first priority was getting our kids out of the house," Vicki Hill said.
Philip added that he had the ABS actuator pump worked on and has the service receipt to prove it.
FOX 5 contacted Nissan, and an official released a statement that reads: "The safety of our customers is extremely important to Nissan. We’ve opened an investigation into this incident. Our team will be reaching back out to Mr. and Mrs. Hill."
