Southbound Highway 17 Briefly Closed

SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS, CA — Both southbound lanes of Highway 17 were closed just north of The Cats in Los Gatos. The California Highway Patrol issued a sig-alert at 9:22 p.m. Thursday advising of the closure.

A fire at a homeless encampment sent heavy smoke over the highway, making driving unsafe.

The highway was reopened about 20 minutes later, but traffic is severely backed-up.

There have been no reports of injuries in the fire.

-Image via Patch Archive

Also See:

• Union City Triple Shooting Over Drugs: Police
  
• One Dead, Two Seriously Injured in Union City Triple Shooting
  
• Barricaded Man in Union City Taken into Custody
  
• Update: Castro Valley Homicide Investigated by Alameda County Sheriff's Office
  
• Man Murdered in Castro Valley Identified
  
• Man Suffers Heart Attack While Driving on Highway 24
  
• Pedestrian Killed in Fremont
  
• Firefighters Rescue 17 Dogs From House Fire (Video)
  
• Driver Thrown Off I-880, Killed
  
• Teen Identified as Crash Victim Thrown From I-880