Fire shuts down I-5

A quarter-acre fire shut down two lanes on the southbound side of Interstate 5 on Saturday afternoon, according to CHP Officer Brandt.

The fire occurred near the intersection of I-5 and Templin Highway north of Castaic.

Brandt said the lanes were shut down around 3:30 p.m. and opened back up around 5:27 p.m. Although the highway was not fully closed, traffic reports indicated there was considerable congestion during the closures.

Ed Pickett, supervising fire dispatcher for the Los Angeles County Fire Department, said that around the same time that lanes were back open on the highway, firefighters had stopped forward advancement of the fire. Pickett was unable to say when exactly if or when the fire was extinguished.

The cause of the fire is still unknown at the time of this publication. However, Brandt indicated it was not caused by a vehicle fire.