Vehicle fire on southbound I-5 in Tacoma snarls traffic, temporarily blocks lanes
A vehicle that caught fire Wednesday on a shoulder of southbound Interstate 5 in Tacoma temporarily blocked four lanes, stalling traffic while crews worked to extinguish the flames.
No injuries were reported from the incident. It’s unclear what caused the vehicle to catch fire.
The incident was reported about 11:29 a.m. just north of the South 48th Street overpass, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. State trooper Robert Reyer said the vehicle was on the right shoulder, near an exit lane to South 56th Street.
Tacoma Fire Department responded and put out the fire. Reyer said three lanes were blocked for a short amount of time while fire crews worked. According to WSDOT, four lanes were blocked at one point, and traffic was backed up to Portland Avenue.
The incident was cleared by about 12:53 p.m., according to a WSDOT tweet.
