The Maine Turnpike has reopened after a tractor-trailer caught fire near the Falmouth-Cumberland town line.
The fire broke out in the truck’s rear right brake assembly at about 9 a.m. around mile marker 56.
Traffic was shut down in both directions for about 15 minutes while crews applied water and foam to the burning section of the truck in the northbound lanes. The fire never threatened to ignite the truck’s load of coal ash, said Falmouth Assistant Fire Chief Jay Hallett.
State police stopped traffic about a half-mile away from the scene to give firefighters and apparatus room to maneuver. Traffic was no longer being diverted off the highway as of 9:40 a.m.. The southbound lanes were reopened earlier.
A representative of the Department of Environmental Protection said the coal ash did not pose a significant environmental hazard.
Copy the Story LinkSend questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.