GOLDEN VALLEY : Big Rig Fire Leaves Some Hot Potatoes
A big rig carrying 47,000 pounds of potatoes caught fire, blocking two lanes of traffic and baking the potatoes in the process, authorities said Monday.
The truck was traveling on the Antelope Valley Freeway south of Golden Valley Road at about 10 p.m. Sunday when the driver noticed that the trailer was on fire, California Highway Patrol Officer John Manduca said.
The blaze apparently was caused by the friction of a flat tire rubbing against another tire, Manduca said.
The driver stopped in the slow lane, uncoupled the tractor from the trailer and drove the tractor to the side of the road.
The California Highway Patrol, the Los Angeles County Fire Department and Caltrans responded to the blaze, which closed down two of the highway’s three southbound lanes for five hours.
No one was injured in the fire.
No damage estimates had been made, Manduca said.
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