California Commuters Are In For a Nightmare After Freeway Fire Damage Shuts Down Highway

A massive fire in California raged under the busy 10 Freeway for hours over the weekend, causing so much structural damage it’s now closed indefinitely in both directions.

The closure is set to make Los Angeles’ already notorious traffic a commuting nightmare for city residents. The 10 Freeway is used by more than 300,000 drivers daily, per ABC News.

“As we made clear yesterday, this was a huge fire, and the damage will not be fixed in an instant,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass at a news conference Monday morning. “Engineers have worked all night and are working right now to determine our path forward.”

As for when the road may reopen, Bass said: “We cannot give you an estimate of time right now.”

Last night I toured the damage to the 10 freeway. We will work with absolute urgency to get it back up and running. I’ll be providing an update for Angelenos with state leaders later this morning — stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/eburVQkMJh

— Karen Bass (@KarenBassLA) November 12, 2023

On Monday, Los Angeles transportation officials warned drivers to expect “gridlock” and suggested they “work from home.”

#BREAKING Both directions of the 10 Freeway near Alameda in Downtown Los Angeles are shutdown following a massive pallet fire. @LAFD on scene. CALTRANS is determining if the structural integrity of the freeway has been compromised.

(?: @RMGNews)

Stay with @ABC7 for updates. pic.twitter.com/mVFSMA82LN

— Marc Cota-Robles (@abc7marccr) November 11, 2023

The cause of the fire is under investigation. California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency on Saturday.