A fire in a tunnel on Interstate 5, some 30 miles north of Los Angeles, resulted in the deaths of at least three people.
The fire started when a fuel tanker crashed and exploded, with the fire spreading to 31 other vehicles, mostly trucks. Flames reportedly shot nearly 100 feet just outside the mouth of the tunnel, and temperatures reached 14000C. The crash happened late on 13 October and the fire was still burning at midday on the following day.
Meanwhile in the UK, a full scale emergency exercise was held this month to test new fire safety systems – both active and passive – installed in the refurbished Homesdale Tunnel on the M25.
The exercise, which lasted half a day, simulated a multiple vehicle collision and lorry fire, and allowed the Highways Agency and emergency services to practice their response to a major incident in the tunnel.
