It was a busy span for Elizabethtown-Kitley firefighters, who responded to two major fires less than 12 hours apart Tuesday to Wednesday.
A barn fire on Baker Road in Toledo, which reportedly killed around 40 farm animals, was followed by a Highway 401 tractor-trailer fire that caused major delays all day Wednesday for eastbound commuters.
The 401 vehicle fire caused massive traffic congestion.
A small part of the eastbound lane of Highway 401 was closed after a tractor-trailer transporting freezies caught fire in the early hours of Wednesday morning, causing long traffic delays.
Leeds County Ontario Provincial Police said they were called to the scene of the fire, in Elizabethtown-Kitley Township, at 1:15 a.m.
The incident took place metres after exit 687 but before the County Road 2 overpass.
Although it is not known at this time what caused the incident, police said it is not their understanding that the fire was the result of a collision.
OPP said that both eastbound and westbound lanes were closed initially to combat the fire that became worse due to a diesel spill.
Police indicated the spill accumulated to around 800 litres worth of diesel, damaging the road and charring a portion of the grass beside the highway.
The Ministry of the Environment (MOE) was on scene to respond to the spill.
At points in the day on Wednesday, traffic was backed up past Mallorytown, causing the stretch of highway to be congested around 12 kilometres from the scene.
OPP said the eastbound lanes of Highway 401 were to remain closed until about 8 p.m. Wednesday due to vehicle removal, resurfacing of damaged asphalt, the MOE investigation and cleanup.
Detours were put in place at Long Beach Drive.
There are no reported injuries and no charges had been laid as of Wednesday afternoon.
Before being sent to the highway, the three-station Elizabethtown fire department handled a major barn fire that required backup.
Elizabethtown-Kitley Fire Chief Jim Donovan said around 40 goats, one horse and one llama were killed as a result of the fire.
The barn fire on Baker Road in Toledo was called in around 3 p.m. Tuesday and firefighters were on scene until 10 p.m.
Elizabethtown-Kitley responded with 28 firefighters, but that was not enough, as mutual aid was activated from Merrickville-Wolford and Athens for tankers and crew.
The Augusta Fire Department was also activated for backup for the Lyn fire hall in the event that another fire would have broken out.
“Numerous” trips were needed by the tanker trucks to keep up with the demand for water as the fire persisted in the dry conditions.
Donovan added the fire was so massive that smoke could be seen from the Forthton area, which is more than 14 kilometres away
It is unknown at this time what caused the barn fire.
Link to original article in Recorder.ca: UPDATED: Busy stretch for firefighters