Weekend Fire on I-85 Started With a Tractor-Trailer

BUFORD, GA — A woods fire along Interstate 85 that burned 110 acres and shut down traffic on the busy highway Saturday was started by a fire on a tractor-trailer carrying cars.

Firefighters responded at 2:21 p.m. to reports of a woods fire at Interstate 85 southbound, north of Hamilton Mill Road near Buford.

They arrived to find a tract0r-trailer carrying eight cars on fire.

Firefighter went to work on the rig and requested backup to help fight the fire that was quickly spreading in the woods nearby.

Gwinnett Fire & Emergency Services Deputy Chief Charles Wells said north Georgia's extreme drought conditions helped the fire spread more quickly — extending into the median of the interstate as well as the woods on its south side.

Southbound lanes of I-85 were closed for several hours due to the fire and for the safety of the more than three dozen firefighters who were battling the blaze.

There was no damage to any homes or businesses, fire officials said. Residents of a nearby subdivision were asked to remain in their homes due to heavy smoke in the area.

The Georgia Forestry Commission also helped fight the fire, using three bulldozers to dig a fire-line break and a fixed-wing aircraft to monitor the blaze.

Firefighters remained on the scene Saturday night and into Sunday morning, monitoring the area for hotspots that could flare back up.

The fire department is urging everyone to be careful with outdoor flames on Halloween and to abide by the state's extension of the outdoor burning ban in Gwinnett County.

Images courtesy Gwinnett County Fire & Emergency Services