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Golden State Freeway to Reopen Monday after Fiery Tunnel Crash
Monday, October 15, 2007
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Oct. 13: A tractor trailer burns after a massive pileup caused a
tunnel fire on the Golden State Freeway.
Oct. 13: A tractor trailer burns after a massive pileup caused a
tunnel fire on the Golden State Freeway.
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. - Drivers bracing for a tough commute to Los
Angeles after last week's deadly freeway crash could get a little
relief Monday morning with the reopening of southbound lanes.
And with any luck, the drive home won't be as bad as anticipated if
authorities get Interstate 5's main northbound lanes open by the
evening as hoped.
Either way, commuters who depend on the stretch of freeway, which
carries about 225,000 vehicles a day, faced the prospect of a
nightmare getting to and from work following Friday night's pileup.
Authorities urged them to take trains and other alternative transit.
"We're doing everything we can," said Warren Stanley, California
Highway Patrol assistant chief.
Investigators determined that 31 vehicles - including big rigs and one
passenger vehicle - were involved in the crash 30 miles north of Los
Angeles that authorities said killed two men and an infant and injured
at least 10 people.
The fire spread from vehicle to vehicle, sent flames shooting nearly
100 feet in the air outside the tunnel and reached temperatures as
high as 1,400 degrees.
RelatedStories
Crews End Search After Massive Tunnel Fire on California Freeway The
tunnel is a truck bypass that runs beneath eight lanes of I-5, the
main West Coast interstate, linking Mexico and Canada. It is also a
major route from Los Angeles to the city's northern suburbs.
The southbound lanes of I-5 were closed for 2 1/2 miles; the
northbound side was closed for about a mile.
State transit officials said they made progress over the weekend,
installing two of five supports to hold up the tunnel. Contractors
were working to put in the remaining three.
Two northbound truck-bypass lanes around the crash site reopened
Sunday night to general traffic. And authorities hoped to have the
main southbound lanes open by 5 a.m. Monday.
Meanwhile, commuter train operators Metrolink planned to start running
run nonstop service with extra cars between downtown Los Angeles and
Santa Clarita on Monday.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in Los
Angeles County, which will allow the state to deploy emergency workers
and equipment and give aid to local government.
The pileup in the southbound truck tunnel began about 11 p.m. Friday.
According to early reports, two big rigs collided on the rain-
slickened highway.
It was remarkable that 10 people were able to escape on their own,
given the extent of the crash and the intensity of the blaze, fueled
for hours by truck cargo, said Los Angeles County Deputy Fire Chief
John Tripp.
"When we look at tunnel fires ... it's pretty miraculous those people
were able to get out," Tripp said.
The acrid smell of burned oil and rubber lingered Sunday at the 550-
foot tunnel. The roadbed and walls where charred black, and concrete
had fallen away in places, exposing the structure's steel skeleton.
The bodies of one man and a child were in the cab of a truck hauling
cantaloupe, which appeared to have hit a pillar outside the tunnel, a
fire official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity
because he was not authorized to speak about the incident.
The other body was found in a truck about 12 feet short of the
tunnel's exit, said the official. All the bodies were burned beyond
recognition, he said.
Monday, October 15, 2007
E-Mail Print Digg This! del.icio.us
FNC
Oct. 13: A tractor trailer burns after a massive pileup caused a
tunnel fire on the Golden State Freeway.
Oct. 13: A tractor trailer burns after a massive pileup caused a
tunnel fire on the Golden State Freeway.
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. - Drivers bracing for a tough commute to Los
Angeles after last week's deadly freeway crash could get a little
relief Monday morning with the reopening of southbound lanes.
And with any luck, the drive home won't be as bad as anticipated if
authorities get Interstate 5's main northbound lanes open by the
evening as hoped.
Either way, commuters who depend on the stretch of freeway, which
carries about 225,000 vehicles a day, faced the prospect of a
nightmare getting to and from work following Friday night's pileup.
Authorities urged them to take trains and other alternative transit.
"We're doing everything we can," said Warren Stanley, California
Highway Patrol assistant chief.
Investigators determined that 31 vehicles - including big rigs and one
passenger vehicle - were involved in the crash 30 miles north of Los
Angeles that authorities said killed two men and an infant and injured
at least 10 people.
The fire spread from vehicle to vehicle, sent flames shooting nearly
100 feet in the air outside the tunnel and reached temperatures as
high as 1,400 degrees.
RelatedStories
Crews End Search After Massive Tunnel Fire on California Freeway The
tunnel is a truck bypass that runs beneath eight lanes of I-5, the
main West Coast interstate, linking Mexico and Canada. It is also a
major route from Los Angeles to the city's northern suburbs.
The southbound lanes of I-5 were closed for 2 1/2 miles; the
northbound side was closed for about a mile.
State transit officials said they made progress over the weekend,
installing two of five supports to hold up the tunnel. Contractors
were working to put in the remaining three.
Two northbound truck-bypass lanes around the crash site reopened
Sunday night to general traffic. And authorities hoped to have the
main southbound lanes open by 5 a.m. Monday.
Meanwhile, commuter train operators Metrolink planned to start running
run nonstop service with extra cars between downtown Los Angeles and
Santa Clarita on Monday.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in Los
Angeles County, which will allow the state to deploy emergency workers
and equipment and give aid to local government.
The pileup in the southbound truck tunnel began about 11 p.m. Friday.
According to early reports, two big rigs collided on the rain-
slickened highway.
It was remarkable that 10 people were able to escape on their own,
given the extent of the crash and the intensity of the blaze, fueled
for hours by truck cargo, said Los Angeles County Deputy Fire Chief
John Tripp.
"When we look at tunnel fires ... it's pretty miraculous those people
were able to get out," Tripp said.
The acrid smell of burned oil and rubber lingered Sunday at the 550-
foot tunnel. The roadbed and walls where charred black, and concrete
had fallen away in places, exposing the structure's steel skeleton.
The bodies of one man and a child were in the cab of a truck hauling
cantaloupe, which appeared to have hit a pillar outside the tunnel, a
fire official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity
because he was not authorized to speak about the incident.
The other body was found in a truck about 12 feet short of the
tunnel's exit, said the official. All the bodies were burned beyond
recognition, he said.