Update: Lanes reopened after fire blocked eastbound state Route 16 in Tacoma
Update, 7:32 p.m.: All lanes are re-opened.
Previous post: A fire was blocking eastbound State Route 16 in Tacoma on Monday evening, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation on X.
The two right lanes were blocked near South Sprague Avenue soon after the fire began at 6:37 p.m. They were still blocked as of 7:08 p.m. Traffic was backed up past Union Avenue.
Tacoma Fire Department spokesperson Chelsea Shepherd said in a phone call that dry conditions led the same area where a brush fire broke out Saturday to reignite. That fire ignited at about 2:47 p.m. on the south side of state Route 16 and spread up toward Center Street, and covered 10,000 square feet when a reporter spoke to Shepherd on Saturday.
Tacoma Fire crews knocked down the smoldering area with water Monday evening and “shut down two lanes very briefly for our rigs to get there,” said Shepherd. The road was reopened within the hour.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include information about the fire from the Tacoma Fire Department.
This story was originally published July 21, 2025 at 7:27 PM.
