Warning: Sensitive Content. The images and details you’re about to see are deeply disturbing and may be upsetting to some readers. The Top Mountain Crosspoint Motorcycle Museum in Austria suffered irreparable damage and irreplaceable loss after catching fire early yesterday morning. You may recall seeing the slideshow Costa graced us with after his surprise visit to the museum while attending an automotive media launch just over a year ago.
Opened in 2016, the museum housed a rare collection of motorcycles owned by brothers Alban and Attila Scheiber. Taking years to assemble, the collection featured models from brands many people likely haven’t even heard of, from the likes of Brough Superior, Sunbeam, NSU, Zenith and Flying Merkel, as well as more commonly known marques like Indian, KTM and Harley-Davidson. Housing as many as 230 motorcycles, the collection also featured a selection of vintage cars sports cars. Located 2,175 m above sea level, the collection spanned 3,000 square metres.
The cause of the fire has yet to be released but scrolling through Costa’s photos you’ll notice that much of the museum’s structure was constructed from wood, which certainly wouldn’t have helped to slow down the spread of flames. According to a post on EuroSprinkler.org, the building, which was located in a remote location and constructed predominantly from combustible materials, was not equipped with a sprinkler system. Firefighters arrived quickly after the alarm went off shortly after 4:00am, so thankfully no people were harmed in the blaze. We’ll provide additional updates once we know more.
Heartbreaking !!!