Traffic returned to normal several hours after a destructive vehicle fire on Interstate 35 on Saturday afternoon.
6 pm Saturday: Vehicle fire destroys trailer hauling produce on Interstate 35
According to the Lyon County Sheriff’s Office, deputies, along with the Reading Fire Department and Fire District 5 were called to mile marker 142 on I-35 just west of the Lyon-Coffey County Line shortly after 12:30 pm for the incident. Upon arrival, crews found a semi-trailer fully engulfed in flames and closed off traffic at mile marker 141 to allow crews time to get the fire under control.
During the investigation of the incident, it was determined that the driver of the semi, 44-year-old Ricardo Amaya of Douglas, Arizona, noticed smoke coming from the 2020 Kenworth while traveling northbound on his passenger side trailer axle. The trailer then caught fire and Amaya disconnected the semi from the trailer, which was hauling produce and suffered no injuries.
The Kansas Department of Transportation is maintaining the scene at last word and has reopened a single northbound lane to traffic; however, the trailer will be left at the scene until further notice, with cleanup likely to take place through the overnight hours.
KVOE News will have more information when it is made available.
