One lane of traffic is now getting through on the Toronto-bound Queen Elizabeth Way near Burlington after a massive fire involving a tractor trailer hauling a load of batteries.
It happened at around 2:30 a.m. on an overpass just east of the Burlington Skyway.
In a video update posted to Twitter on Thursday morning, OPP Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said that the fire “completely consumed” the truck and has left crews with a “huge mess” to clean up.
Traffic was fully blocked at Fairview Street for much of the morning, though one lane of traffic did reopen just after 10 a.m. There is no timeline for when the rest of the highway will reopen.
“I expect this closure will remain in place for several more hours,” Schmidt said. “There is a lot more work to be done as crews consider how to offload these batteries, obviously filled with corrosive acid whatever else.”
Footage from the scene on Thursday showed the mangled and charred remains of a trailer on the highway next to a median. The remains of what appears to be large vehicle batteries are also seen in the footage.
Schmidt said that once the charred tractor trailer is removed from the highway crews will likely have to grind and repave parts of the roadway due to damage that was caused by the heat from the fire.
“Avoid the area if you can. There are heavy delays,” he said.
Ontario Provincial Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the fire.
No injuries were reported.
