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Truck Fire Shuts Down I-94 In Both Directions

DETROIT (WWJ) - Motorists were hitting the brakes along I-94 in Detroit on Wednesday after a semi truck caught fire on the freeway.

It happened just before 2 p.m., shutting down I-94 on the eastbound side at Wyoming and at I-96 on the westbound side. By 3:30 p.m., two lanes were back open in each direction.

WWJ Newsradio 950's Sandra McNeil talked with witnesses at the scene who said the truck blew a tire, lost control and crashed into the median wall.

J.R. Kendrick said he heard a huge bang and came to check it out."It hit two times ... it hit right here on this wall," he said. "Look at how much concrete blew off of there. All that was pure solid ... see that? When he hit that it blew off of there and went up in the air and started hitting cars."

Kendrick said it appeared a couple of people in those cars were hurt, but the truck driver was able to safely escape his vehicle before it burst into flames.

Witnesses said an ambulance took at least one, maybe two, people from the scene -- although that has not yet been confirmed by police.

Traffic remained jammed in the area as the afternoon commute began. At 4 p.m., eastbound traffic was backed up to Rotunda and westbound to I-75.

For the latest from the roads, keep it tuned to WWJ Newsradio 950 for traffic and weather, every 10 minutes on the 8s. For more information anytime, visit our traffic page.

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