A fire burning near the Oakland-Emeryville border.
Firefighters continue to battle a large fire on Monday morning at a homeless encampment in West Oakland near the Emeryville border, where plumes of heavy smoke shut down nearby freeways.
At about 10:30 a.m., crews responded to the fire at 34th and Wood streets underneath the Interstate Highway 880 overpass near the MacArthur Maze, where it connects to Interstates 80 and 580.
"It's still a very active fire," Oakland Fire Department spokesperson Michael Hunt said.
As of 11:30 a.m., heavy smoke from the fire was blocking nearby freeways and westbound I-80 to southbound I-880 was shut down and motorists were being diverted to the Bay Bridge toll plaza. The eastbound I-580 connector was also shut down, according to the California Highway Patrol.
About 65 firefighters are on the scene battling the blaze that so far has engulfed about 20 cars, multiple RVs and has ignited about 50 yards of a large, nonoperational train trestle, Hunt said.
"Right now the biggest concern is that (the trestle) may and likely will collapse based on the amount of fire on it," he said.
Smoke from the fire can be seen for miles and the sound of explosions echoed through the neighborhood.
Drivers are being told to avoid the area.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
CA Is Burning said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.