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UPDATED: Most lanes of I-5 reopen at fire near Bowman Road
Photo by Andreas Fuhrmann / Record Searchlight
Firefighters spray a big rig that caught fire this afternoon and disrupted Interstate 5 traffic at Bowman Road in Tehama County.
Photo by Andreas Fuhrmann / Record Searchlight
A big-rig fire stalled traffic on Interstate 5 at Bowman Road this afternoon.
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The northbound lanes of Interstate 5 and one southbound lane reopened just before 6 p.m. today after a big rig caught on fire on the freeway at Bowman Road.
All lanes of the freeway had been closed temporarily because the fire was causing visibility problems, the California Highway Patrol reported. The fire broke out about 5:20 p.m.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
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Posted by itsmyturn on October 11, 2008 at 6:57 p.m.
Makes you wonder how a big rig can catch fire like that. Locked brakes maybe? Big rigs are replaceable, people aren't. Hope the drivers are ok! That's the main thing.
Posted by i5trucker on October 11, 2008 at 7:03 p.m.
Could have been an overheated brake or an electrical problem, those are two common causes of truck fires.
Posted by cottonwoodnoob on October 11, 2008 at 7:38 p.m.
My daughter got some spectacular photos-but we are unable to post them. We were safely parked off Bowman out of the way of traffic and emergency crews-according to the CHP it was plastic containers that caused the black smoke-I was amazed to see the CHP reports that idiots were turning around in the middle of I5 to go the other direction. I was also amazed to see that they were allowing traffic to pass by this inferno next to the center divider-there was no mention of the diesel tanks rupturing-we did not witness an explosion.
There was also no mention that anyone was injured n this. We did not see any ambulances. Too bad I can't post pic's.
Posted by Lori_UOP on October 11, 2008 at 8 p.m.
Also saw this today...spoke with someone who was on scene right after it caught, said it looked like the underside of the trailer caught first. By the time I came upon it (around 5:45pm)the trailer FULLY engulfed and the tractor was about 70% as well. It looked as if the fuel tanks were already gone by then. Diesel will burn with the big black billows as well...does not explode like gasoline.
Posted by uwishuknewmeto on October 11, 2008 at 8:42 p.m.
in response to cottonwoodnoob
Post the pictures on craigslist for us. Or somewhere else and give us the link!!!
Posted by californiakayaker on October 11, 2008 at 8:45 p.m.
am hearing an incident where they are sending a ladder truck to a house where there is a boom truck with people stuck on top and it won't come down. Anybody else here this, sound sort of distant.
Posted by californiakayaker on October 11, 2008 at 8:47 p.m.
A city of redding Ladder truck was sent to see if it can get the ladder to the top of the boom truck, but I don't know where it is happening, and my system can hear quite a distance.
Posted by hillclimberguy on October 11, 2008 at 11:46 p.m.
That incident was in lakehead off lakeshore dr.
It was a boom truck extended 35' up with two people in it cutting a tree and a branch came down and hit the controls for the boom. Lakehead Fire Dept only carries 24' ladders so the BC requested RFD Truck 1. I guess they didnt know the basic principal of hydraulics though, if you release the pressure in a line the boom comes down. Ohwell first time truck 1 was used for its purpose in quite a while
Posted by Chrastopha on October 12, 2008 at 4:11 a.m.
norcal.chrastopha.com has video from the scene
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