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Ashley Hayes ReportingSmoke and fire is what you saw in Saltair off I-80 westbound yesterday evening.
A big rig burst into flames while the trucker was driving. He was heading west to Portland, but his trip stopped right there on the interstate near Tooele.
The driver says he was moving right along when he clipped mirrors with another vehicle. He says moments later drivers were flagging him over, saying he was on fire.
Truck driver Angelo Dickens says when he looked at his mirror, all he saw was flames.
Angelo Dickens, Semi Caught fire: "So I just steered it to the right and when it got slow enough, I knew I couldn't get off on the right side. I leaped out the driver's side, hit the pavement and rolled over."
The fire quickly spread.
Officials say he was carrying highly flammable material, a load of hard wood flooring.
The UHP says Dicken's quick reaction turned out to be good thinking on his part. He was able to get the truck as far off the highway as possible and didn't involve any other cars in the process.
The fire and smoke did, however, create a lot of traffic congestion.
Sgt. Blaine Robbins, Utah Highway Patrol: "It has made an absolute mess. We've got, right now, traffic diverted at 7200 West. We've had traffic stopped because of how bad the smoke was. They didn't want people driving through it. Plus firefighters had their hoses on the freeway and everything. But yeah, traffic is backed up probably four to five miles."
The truck was burnt to the ground along with about 100 yards of grass to the right of the median.
No one was hurt in the truck fire. The worst of it was the traffic. The driver was pretty shaken up and said he was calling his bosses.
