Seattle roadways were snarled for six hours Thursday when a truck hauling liquid oxygen tanks broke down and began exploding on highway I-5.
All southbound I-5 lanes, closed around 1 p.m. and roads did not completely reopen until 7:30 p.m.
The incident started out as a fire in the vehicle hauling the oxygen that spread to the cargo area, Seattle Fire Department reported.
As that fire spread, it began touching off explosions in the multiple oxygen tanks in the rear of the truck. The driver of the truck escaped the vehicle uninjured and no one else was hurt in the incident/
However, first responders were kept busy with vehicles breaking down and running out of gas while waiting for the roadways to clear. Seattle surface arteries were also heavily clogged for most of the day.
