Big rig catches fire in Grapevine

Efforts to tow burned or disabled vehicles from the scene ties up two of four Interstate 5 southbound lanes

Firefighters responding to reports of a car-hauling big rig on fire near Templin Highway found four vehicles including the rig itself on fire when they arrived.

Although the vehicle fires were extinguished quickly, efforts to tow the burned or disabled vehicles from the scene and cleanup debris tied up two of four southbound lanes of Interstate 5 for about an hour, and prompted the morning-long closure of the slow lane.

By 2:30 p.m., all lanes of the southbound I-5 were reopened, CHP Officer Eric Preissman told The Signal.

“This started very earlier this morning. We shut down the number three and four lanes,” he said, referring to the slow lane and the lane next to it.

The incident began shortly after 7:50 a.m. by motorists contacted the California Highway Patrol to report the right rear tire of a big rig hauling several cars was on fire.

Firefighters with the Los Angeles County Fire Department were dispatched at 7:53 a.m. to the southbound lanes of I-5, just south of Templin Highway, a Fire Department spokesman said.

“This call was for three fully-involved vehicles,” he said, noting the fourth vehicle was the big rig itself.

“There was no spread to the brush,” he said.

Firefighters arrived at the scene at 8:06 a.m. and, within five minutes, extinguished all four vehicle fires.

No one was hurt in the incident.