Firefighters are at the scene of an excavation operation beneath the Harbor (110) Freeway that has shut down all lanes in both directions Tuesday as they attempt to extinguish a fire inside a freeway tunnel.
The Los Angeles Fire Department started battling the difficult fire early Monday evening and said it believed it was started by people living in a homeless encampments.
LAFD Heavy Rescue and Urban Search and Rescue crews responded at 7:50 p.m. Monday to the northbound freeway where they found the remnants of a fire believed to have been started by homeless individuals, said LAFD spokeswoman Lyndsey Lantz.
By 8:50 p.m., crews had been on scene for approximately one hour, working to access and suppress fire inside the confined space.
A Caltrans highway engineer is now at the scene and LAFD Incident Command is proceeding cautiously and prioritizing firefighter safety, while working to extinguish the fire during the operation inside the confined space, Lantz said.
At 10:49 p.m. the California Highway Patrol said it shut down the 110 Freeway in both directions.
Due to construction work on the tunnel, the north and southbound lanes of the 110 will be closed for an unknown duration, according to the CHP.
A Caltrans highway engineer is planning to join LAFD crews at the scene for support tactical planning. No injuries have been reported.
Where along the 110 did this fire occurr?