Fire halts Interstate 5 traffic south of Bellingham
Update: WSDOT reports that the freeway was cleared about 5:30 p.m.
Southbound Interstate was blocked south of Bellingham Thursday afternoon Whatcom County firefighters battled a fire along the freeway.
Video sent from the scene showed firefighters working to douse a brush fire at the North Lake Samish Drive off-ramp just before 3 p.m. Thursday.
More than a dozen engines and other firefighting units from several fire departments were sent to the scene, according to the emergency services app Pulse Point.
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At least one lane was open southbound with a backup into the city of Bellingham, the Washington State Department of Transportation tweeted at 3:40 p.m.
“The left lane is now open on southbound I-5 just west of North Lake Samish south of Bellingham. Fire and Washington State Patrol are on scene. The backup is about 4 miles. Seek alternate routes and expect delays,” WSDOT said.
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It was unknown what sparked the fire, but an earlier tweet from WSDOT said a car was disabled at the same location.
“On I-5 southbound just west of North Lake Samish (milepost 246) there is a disabled vehicle blocking all lanes,” WSDOT tweeted.
This story was originally published July 27, 2023 at 3:37 PM.
