ST. GEORGE — A semitractor-trailer filled with syrup caught fire on northbound Interstate 15 in the Virgin River Gorge Thursday afternoon. Traffic was impacted throughout the evening.
The Beaver Dam-Littlefield Fire Department was dispatched to the scene at mile marker 18, near the exit to Cedar Pocket Road, shortly before 4 p.m. MDT. Responders found the semi almost fully engulfed, and the syrup was a total loss, Assistant Fire Chief Andre Ojeda told St. George News.
“It was almost all consumed,” he said. “I don’t know why it consumed itself so quickly. I don’t know if it’s something that had to do with the syrup or whatever else she was carrying, but when we arrived on the scene, the tractor was long gone, and then almost three-quarters of the trailer was gone also.”
The fire might have originated at the front of the trailer, but the cause is still unclear. The truck’s driver told responders she smelled smoke and stopped the vehicle — she and her male passenger did not appear injured, Ojeda said.
It reportedly took approximately two hours to snuff the flames, after which the department began work on the sticky mess left in the outside lane.
Later in the evening, firefighters returned following reports from the Arizona Department of Public Safety that there was still syrup on the road’s edge, which they cleared using high-pressure water from a fire engine, Ojeda said.
Now cleared, both lanes were closed during the response, with one opened later to allow additional emergency vehicles to arrive amid bumper-to-bumper traffic, said Ojeda, adding that drivers should remember to make room for emergency responders.
“Always think about, ‘If it’s an emergency vehicle behind me, how am I going to move out of the way?'” he said.
The Arizona Department of Transportation and DPS also responded.
This report is based on preliminary information provided by law enforcement officials and may not contain the full scope of findings.
Photo Gallery
A semitractor-trailer burns on the side of I-15 near Littlefield, Arizona, Aug. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Jeanette Lopez, St. George News A semitractor-trailer burns on the side of I-15 near Littlefield, Arizona, Aug. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Jeanette Lopez, St. George News A semitractor-trailer burns on the side of I-15 near Littlefield, Arizona, Aug. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Jeanette Lopez, St. George News A semitractor-trailer burns on the side of I-15 near Littlefield, Arizona, Aug. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Jeanette Lopez, St. George News A semitractor-trailer burns on the side of I-15 near Littlefield, Arizona, Aug. 24, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Jeanette Lopez, St. George News
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