Seal Beach : Flaming Truckload of Hay Ties Up Freeway

A truckload of hay caught fire on the San Diego Freeway in Seal Beach on Saturday, and all four northbound lanes were closed for more than two hours while Highway Patrol officers and Long Beach Fire Department crews cleaned up the mess.

Officers said the fire started at about 11:40 a.m., just north of the San Gabriel River Freeway, when the truck’s rear wheels began rubbing together from the weight of the 46,000-pound load. Much of the load spilled onto the freeway, and firefighters had to pull the rest off the truck in order to put out the fire.

The two right-hand lanes were reopened at about 2:10 p.m., according to CHP dispatcher Beth Amer. The other two lanes remained closed until about 5 p.m.

The truck driver, whose name wasn’t available, wasn’t injured. Amer said she was unsure how far traffic backed up, but she said one woman caller told her it took about 45 minutes to get from Beach Boulevard to the Valley View Street off-ramp.