PHOENIX — Fire crews worked to put out a large fire involving railroad ties near downtown Phoenix Wednesday night.
Aerial footage showed the fire burning at the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway near Interstate 10 and 19th Avenue.
Officials say a large pile of highly combustible railroad ties was found at the scene fully engulfed in flames. It's not clear what caused the fire to start.
It took about two hours for crews to get control of the blaze, which was also burning near rail cars, causing crews to treat the incident as a defensive and potentially hazardous situation.
A large amount of smoke also forced the closure of a portion of I-10 Wednesday night.
Officials say residences near the fire were not in immediate danger due to low winds.
*CLOSURE* *PLEASE SHARE*
— Arizona DOT (@ArizonaDOT) May 5, 2022
I-10 is CLOSED in both directions at 7th Ave. due to a fire.
Eastbound traffic must exit at 43rd Ave.
Westbound traffic must exit 7th Ave.
Motorists should expect delays and seek an alternate route. There is no estimated time to reopen the road. pic.twitter.com/VBRMAapjAL
No injuries were reported during the incident.
