Commuters on the Bay Bridge faced mass congestion yesterday afternoon after a truck caught fire, the result of an undetected blown out tire, according to California Highway Patrol (CHP).
The fire broke out shortly after 1 p.m. after the driver of the refrigerator truck carrying Coors beer failed to notice the tire on the tractor part of the truck’s metal rim scraping against the roadway, said CHP Officer Shawn Chase. The driver escaped unhurt, as did his fellow commuters on the bridge.
All eastbound traffic was stopped for 45 minutes as firefighters attended to the blaze, while parts of the upper westbound deck were also closed. There was also significant disruption on many Bay Area freeways, exacerbated by stranded drivers on the bridge leaving their vehicles to get a closer look at the incident.
The fire was eventually extinguished shortly after 2 p.m., at which point all westbound and some eastbound lanes reopened. Despite CHP claims that the truck would be cleared by 4 p.m., it wasn’t until almost 6 p.m. that the wreckage was finally removed.
Good job on this. 20/20
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