Video captures fireworks exploding from burning trailer that shut down Interstate 75
A trailer hauling fireworks caught fire along Interstate 75 in Tennessee on Saturday night, sending pyrotechnics shooting across the highway and prompting authorities to temporarily close the roadway in both directions.
The fire broke out on the northbound side of the interstate near the Ooltewah exit, just outside Chattanooga. Video captured by the Chattanooga Fire Department shows fireworks launching into the air and detonating in multiple directions as flames consumed the trailer. Vehicles on the highway sat stopped at a distance while crews worked to contain the scene.
"It involved fireworks that were going off in different directions, endangering drivers," the Chattanooga Fire Department said in a statement on Facebook, noting that Chattanooga Fire, Tri-Community Volunteer Fire Department, and law enforcement all responded to the call.
Tri-Community Volunteer Fire Department, which served as the lead agency because the fire occurred outside the city limits, said the trailer was fully loaded with fireworks and that all of them became involved in the blaze, triggering a series of explosions that continued throughout the incident. Chattanooga crews assisted under a mutual aid agreement.
As a precaution, both northbound and southbound lanes of Interstate 75 were shut down while firefighters battled the flames. Tri-Community said emergency vehicles traveled northbound in the southbound lanes and used that route to shuttle water to crews on scene, a logistical maneuver that allowed firefighters to keep up their water supply without having to wait for tankers to turn around.
A spokesperson for the Chattanooga Fire Department told Fox News Digital that the southbound lanes reopened relatively quickly, while northbound traffic remained halted for a longer period as crews monitored hot spots and eventually cleared the burned trailer from the roadway.
Dramatic footage from the scene showed fireworks rocketing into the night sky before exploding over the interstate, with firefighters deploying hoses as the trailer remained engulfed in flames. One photograph provided to media outlets shows a large enclosed trailer at the center of the blaze.
No injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire has not been released. Authorities have not said where the trailer was headed or what company owned it.
The incident is the latest in a string of fires involving commercial vehicles and hazardous cargo on American roadways this year, though Saturday's event ended without the casualties that have accompanied some similar incidents elsewhere. In January, a fireworks accident in Honolulu killed three people and injured more than twenty, with survivors describing the scene as resembling a war zone.
Interstate 75 is a major north-south corridor connecting Tennessee to Kentucky and points further north. The Ooltewah exit sits in a suburban stretch of Hamilton County southeast of downtown Chattanooga, an area that sees steady commercial truck traffic.
Cleanup and investigation efforts were expected to continue into Sunday. Motorists traveling through the area were advised to monitor updates from the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the latest on lane closures and detour routes.