THE NEWS IN BRIEF: Limousine Catches Fire Outside Johnston Gate En Route To Wedding, No Injuries Reported

A wedding limousine caught fire in front of Johnston Gate Saturday afternoon, emitting smoke that could be seen throughout the Harvard Yard area.

The car’s passengers and its driver were not injured in the accident, which was reported to the Cambridge Fire Department (CFD) at 4:41 p.m. Saturday, according to CFD Communications Supervisor Kirk Warnum.

The cause of the fire is currently unknown, Warnum said.

The car, a white Lincoln limousine, was heavily charred from its front engine to its rear doors.

The limousine was towed away on a flatbed after CFD extinguished the fire, according to Warnum.

Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) spokesman Steven G. Catalano said that the passengers were headed to a wedding in Memorial Church.

They were waiting in front of Johnston Gate—which is situated between Mass. Hall and Harvard Hall—when the car’s engine started smoking and caught fire.

“There wasn’t a crash,” Catalano said. “They were just waiting for the gate to open.”

As Cambridge firefighters extinguished the flames and examined the damage to the car, HUPD officers on the scene worked to keep passersby a safe distance away from the burned-out limousine and to direct traffic along Mass. Ave.

Pre-frosh Joshua C. Feblowitz said he was in Harvard Square when the accident occurred and ran to the Yard shortly after he saw smoke rising from the area.

“It was really going. The whole thing was pretty much engulfed,” he said.

—Nicholas M. Ciarelli contributed to the reporting of this story.

—DANIEL J. T. SCHUKER