SUNDAY.
SUNDAY. I
SUNDAY. I WILL HAVE THAT COMING UP IN
THE FULL FORECAST.
CHRISTIE.
CHRISTIE.
CHRISTIE. >> LET'S GO BACK OUT TO
GWINNETT COUNTY WHERE A MASSIVE
TRACTOR TRAILER FIRE HAS SHUT
DOWN BOTH SIDES OF THE
INTERSTATE.
INTERSTATE. IT INVOLVED A TRACTOR TRAILER
AND TWO CARS.
OUR REPORTER NICK HAS MADE HIS
WAY LIVE TO THE SCENE.
NICK, WHAT CAN YOU SEE FROM
WHERE YOU ARE?
>>
>> Reporter: BEHIND ME YOU SEE THAT THICK BLACK SMOKE.
YOU CAN SEE THAT PLUME OF SMOKE
FROM MILES AWAY.
WE NOTICED IT FROM FIVE MILES
AWAY.
AWAY.
AWAY. AND
AWAY. AND THE FIRE, AGAIN, AS YOU
MENTIONED, THE RESULT OF AYE AN
ACCIDENT INVOLVING A TRACTOR
TRAILER AND TWO OTHER VEHICLES.
A TRACTOR TRAILER AND ANOTHER
VEHICLE OVERTURNED.
VEHICLE OVERTURNED. THE SOUTHBOUND AND NORTHBOUND
LANES ARE NOW SHUT DOWN.
WE HAVE A PHOTOGRAPHER THAT IS
CLOSER TO THE SCENE THAN WE
ARE.
ARE.
ARE. AND
ARE. AND HE WAS TELLING US THAT SOME
PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY ABANDONED
THEIR VEHICLES.
THEIR VEHICLES. AND THERE ARE PEOPLE -- CAN WE
PAN TO THE RIGHT.
YOU CAN SEE THIS IS THE
NORTHBOUND LANE HERE NEAR JIMMY
CARTER BOULEVARD.
CARTER BOULEVARD. IT IS AT A STAND STILL.
PEOPLE ARE JUST OUTSIDE HANGING
OUT IN FRONT OF THEIR CAR ON
THE PHONE.
THE PHONE. SOME PEOPLE AT ONE POINT WHEN
WE GOT HERE ON TOP OF THEIR
CARS TO GET A BETTER VIEW.
FROM OUR DISTANCE, WE CAN SEE
THAT THICK BLACK SMOKE.
SOME FLAMES.
SOME FLAMES. AND, AGAIN, THE NORTHBOUND AND
SOUTHBOUND LANES ARE SHUT DOWN.
BEFORE WE GOT HERE, TALKING TO
FOLKS IN THE NEWSROOM, I DON'T
THINK WE HAVE SEEN ANYTHING
QUITE LIKE
QUITE LIKE AGAIN, EMERGENCY RESPONDERS ARE
ASKING PEOPLE TO AVOID THE
AREA.
AREA.
AREA. BUFORD HIGHWAY IS THE BEST
ALTERNATE.
ALTERNATE. WE WILL TRY TO GATHER AS MUCH
INFORMATION AS WE CAN ON WHAT
EXACTLY HAPPENED AND WHAT
CAUSED THIS BASICALLY INFERNO
ON I-85.
ON I-85.
ON I-85. >> THIS IS STUNNING VIDEO.
WHAT IS INTERESTING, NICK,
YOU'RE ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE
FROM WHERE OUR TRAFFIC CAMERA
IS.
IS.
IS. FROM
IS. FROM YOUR DIRECTION YOU CAN SEE
THE FLAMES BETTER.
WHEREAS FROM THE OTHER SIDE
LOOKING BACK AT IT, WE CAN
REALLY ONLY SEE THE SMOKE.
FROM WHAT YOU'RE SEEING, IT
LOOKS LIKE THE FIRE IS STILL
RAGING PRETTY STRONGLY.
IS THAT CORRECT, FROM WHAT YOU
CAN SEE?
CAN SEE?
CAN SEE? >> Reporter: YES.
YES.
YES.
YES. YOU
YES. YOU CAN DEFINITELY SEE THE
FLAMES.
FLAMES.
FLAMES. AND, AGAIN, THAT THICK BLACK
SMOKE IS THE ONE THING THAT
REALLY POPS OUT.
ONE THING THAT WE NOTICED AND
THE REASON WE PULLED OVER ON
THIS SIDE OF THE ROAD, AND THIS
IS SORT OF AN ACCESS ROAD HERE,
CLOSEST TO THE SOUTHBOUND LANE.
AND, AGAIN, A PHOTOGRAPHER WHO
IS A LITTLE CLOSER TO THE SCENE
TOLD US THAT PEOPLE HAVE
ALREADY ABANDONED THEIR
VEHICLES.
VEHICLES.
VEHICLES. POLICE HAVE TOLD FOLKS TO MAKE
SURE TO WANT WHERE THEY STEP,
ESPECIALLY WHERE THE MANHOLES
ARE.
ARE.
ARE. THIS
ARE. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE WILL
CONTINUE TO FOLLOW UP ON AND
WORK TO GET MORE INFORMATION.
PEOPLE ARE HERE TRYING TO
FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENED.
I SAW A CAR PASS THROUGH THIS
ACCESS ROAD.
ACCESS ROAD. AND SOMEBODY HAD THEIR WINDOW
DOWN.
DOWN.
DOWN. AND
DOWN. AND THEY SAID SIMPLY WOW.
AND, AGAIN, AS YOU SEE THIS,
WOW.
WOW.
WOW. >>
WOW. >> YEAH.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. YOU'RE HOPING ALL OF THE PEOPLE
THERE STUCK IN THE TRAFFIC HAVE
FULL GAS TANKS BECAUSE THEY
HAVE BEEN SITTING THERE FOR AT
LEAST AN HOUR AT THIS POINT.
NICK, ONE MORE QUESTION FOR
YOU.
YOU.
YOU. CAN
YOU. CAN YOU SEE -- IT DOESN'T LOOK
LIKE IT FROM WHERE WE CAN SEE.
BUT IS THERE ANY WAY THAT THOSE
CARS HAVE ANY KIND OF ACCESS
POINT TO LEAVE THE INTERSTATE
OR TO TURN AROUND OR ARE THEY
PRETTY BOXED IN AT THIS POINT?
>> Reporter: IT LOOKS LIKE
THEY'RE BOXED IN.
AS I MENTIONED, PEOPLE ARE JUST
LEAVING THEIR CARS FROM WHAT
WE'RE TOLD FROM A PHOTOGRAPHER
CLOSER TO THE SCENE.
AGAIN, PEOPLE ARE JUST HANGING
OUT RIGHT NOW.
IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE FROM WHERE
WE ARE THEY ARE IN ANY DANGER.
BUT, AGAIN, I DON'T SEE ANY WAY
FOR PEOPLE TO LEAVE.
THEY'RE BOXED IN.
SOME EMERGENCY CREWS ARE TRYING
TO WORK THEIR WAY TO THE SCENE.
SORT OF WEAVING THEIR WAY,
WHATEVER SPACE THEY CAN FIND
THROUGH THE TRAFFIC.
FOR RIGHT NOW PEOPLE ARE
HANGING OUT ON ESPECIALLY THE
NORTHBOUND LANE.
NORTHBOUND LANE. THEY'RE HERE.
THEY'RE HERE. WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG THEY
WILL BE HERE.
WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG THE
HIGHWAY IS GOING TO BE SHUT
DOWN.
DOWN.
DOWN. >>
DOWN. >> YEAH.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. IT HAS ALREADY BEEN AT LEAST AN
HOUR AT THIS POINT.
NICK, WE'RE TRYING TO LEARN
INFORMATION ABOUT INJURY.
HAVE YOU SEEN ANY AMBULANCES
COMING TO OR FROM THE SCENE OF
THE ACCIDENT?
THE ACCIDENT? >> Reporter: I HAVE NOT.
AGAIN, WE GOT HERE A FEW
MINUTES AGO.
MINUTES AGO. WE LITERALLY SET UP.
AND JUST TO DESCRIBE OUR SETUP,
WE'RE AT APP ELEVATED LEVEL.
WE'RE ON TOP OF THE LIVE TRUCK
WHICH IS WHY WE'RE ABLE TO GET
THE GREAT VIEW OF THE FIRE.
RIGHT NOW WE HAVE NOT SEEN ANY
AMBULANCES, ANYTHING TO SUGGEST
THAT THERE HAVE BEEN ANY
INJURIES.
INJURIES.
INJURIES. SO FAR WE'RE WORKING TO GATHER
MORE INFORMATION ON IF ANYONE
WAS HURT FROM THIS ACCIDENT.
>> OKAY.
>> OKAY.
>> OKAY. WE ARE TOO.
THANKS FOR YOUR REPORTING LIVE
FROM THE SCENE.
THAT CRASH RIGHT BETWEEN
PLEASANT DALE ROAD, JIMMY
CARTER BOULEVARD ASK IT LOOKS