UPDATE: All Westbound Lanes of Bay Bridge Reopen Following Truck Fire, Repairs
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- A vehicle fire on the Bay Bridge snarled westbound traffic into San Francisco Thursday morning, forcing Caltrans to make emergency repairs that closed lanes for hours.
A utility truck with propane on board was burning just east of Fremont Street at around 8:43 a.m.. At least two explosions were seen engulfing the burning propane tanks.
***TRAFFIC ADVISORY***
— CHP San Francisco (@CHPSanFrancisco) August 19, 2021
All lanes of I-80 w/b (SFOBB), just east of Fremont St. off are currently stopped due to a vehicle fire with propane on board. pic.twitter.com/a4oJ0ugM6U
Emergency crews headed to the fire from San Francisco and San Francisco fireboats shot water onto the blaze from below.
#BREAKING All lanes blocked upper deck of the #BayBridge a truck is on fire near Treasure Island! Use @SFBART or the San Mateo Bridge as an alternate. Updates at https://t.co/2zxKKDh4qv @KPIXtv #kpix pic.twitter.com/5hZm2pdvNQ
— Gianna Suter-Franco (@gianna_franco) August 19, 2021
Traffic headed toward San Francisco from Oakland was backed up for miles. As of 9:11 a.m., the two left westbound lanes had been reopened according to the California Highway Patrol.
We have opened the left two lanes (#1 and #2) of I-80 w/b (SFOBB). Cleanup and bridge inspection pending. pic.twitter.com/HFq4cptPAL
— CHP San Francisco (@CHPSanFrancisco) August 19, 2021
By 9:40 a.m., fire crews reported they had extinguished the fire. They also opened lane #3 to allow for more traffic to go through.
Responders reported no injuries from the blaze. There was no immediate word on what caused the fire.
While three westbound lanes reopened, the closure of the two right lanes for Caltrans repairs made travel into San Francisco difficult, creating a massive backup leading to the toll plaza.
All lanes were reopened by Caltrans by around 1:15 p.m. following repairs.
UPDATE: All lanes on westbound I-80 over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge to re-open by 1 p.m. Caltrans crews got it done! pic.twitter.com/sAPYSgKY5I
— Caltrans District 4 (@CaltransD4) August 19, 2021