Both northbound Highway 101 lanes were reopened through Summerland around 1:50 p.m. Thursday after hours of lane closures and congested traffic following a big-rig crash and vehicle fire.
A semi truck apparently overturned and caught fire around 5 a.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.
Both highway lanes were closed for several hours while firefighting crews and Caltrans workers doused the flames and removed the wreckage.
Caltrans District 5 said the left lane of the two-lane freeway reopened around 8:50 a.m. and then announced the full re-opening just before 2 p.m.
Heavy traffic backups were reported in the area for hours, which affected the morning commute and surface traffic in the Carpinteria, Montecito and Summerland communities.
There was still heavy traffic in the area as of 2 p.m. and Caltrans traffic cameras showed northbound traffic (toward Santa Barbara) moving very slowly at Rincon and Casitas Pass Road.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
