Tunnel Fire Snarls Los Angeles Traffic

Oct 15, 08:34 AM

Current Headlines: Los Angeles-area commuters faced delays Monday as some lanes of Interstate 5 were closed after a massive pile-up and fire burned out a truck tunnel last week.

The California Department of Transportation opened two northbound truck lanes Sunday and said it was possible the main northbound lanes could be reopened sometime Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Friday night, 28 trucks and a car were involved in a pile-up in the Newhall Pass tunnel that caused a massive fire that killed two men and an infant.

Officials with the Metrolink commuter rail line announced they would use additional cars on scheduled trains and add new runs but cautioned commuters to expect delays, the report said.

Douglas Failing, regional director for the California Department of Transportation, said removal of the burned wreckage was completed Sunday and crews were installing beams in the middle of the tunnel to reinforce concrete girders running across the top.

The structural integrity of the sidewalls has been compromised, Failing said.