CALIFORNIA — Cleanup crews were faced with a rather unusual task on Wednesday morning as a semi-truck carrying a load of pumpkins caught fire on a California freeway, turning a Halloween delivery into a fiery spectacle.
The incident occurred on the southbound stretch of the 5 Freeway at Smoky Bear Road in Lebec, with the blaze erupting shortly after 2 a.m. Video footage from the scene captured the aftermath, showing hundreds of scorched and battered pumpkins strewn across the roadway as emergency crews worked to extinguish the fire.
Thankfully, no injuries were reported in connection with the incident. Authorities are currently in the process of investigating the cause of the fire, which left a trail of pumpkin destruction in its wake.
As of 6:15 a.m. Wednesday, the right lane of the southbound 5 Freeway remained closed, causing some delays for commuters.
These unfortunate pumpkins represent just a fraction of California’s pumpkin production. According to data from the United States Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, nearly 5,000 acres of pumpkins were harvested in the state in 2022. However, this figure pales in comparison to the leading pumpkin-producing state, Illinois, which harvested more than 16,000 acres of pumpkins during the same time period.
The incident serves as a reminder that even the most ordinary of objects can become unexpected obstacles when they go up in flames on the freeway.