Traffic Chaos as Truck Catches Fire on The Burdekin Bridge

Within the early hours of Thursday 6 June, the motorists of the Burdekin region experienced lengthy delays and major travelling inconveniences following a truck fire on the Burdekin Bridge.

Five emergency service crews responded to calls just after 5am to find a B Double Semi Trailer Truck fully engulfed in flames. The vehicle was transporting pallets of alcohol travelling North along the Bruce Highway when a mechanical failure occurred, and the truck’s tyres burst.

A Queensland Police Service spokesperson has advised that the driver, a 50-year-old Moranbah man, was pulled from the vehicle without any injuries.

Several hours following the incident, many motorists were continuing to experience heavy delays with single lane traffic control extending throughout the day. Traffic continued to cause chaos past the Home Hill Racecourse, through back roads and side streets, with travellers making desperate efforts to make their way both to and from work. Numerous businesses remained closed until midday, waiting for staff members to navigate their way through the heavy traffic congestion.

Hundreds of locals took to Facebook to communicate their first-hand accounts of the events. Several commenters explained their frustration at waiting in traffic ques for over two hours, and their annoyance with highway traffic coming to a complete halt.

Many commentors expressed their fears for the region if the Burdekin Bridge ever experiences a permanent closure, calling for the construction of a secondary bridge.

“Might be time for the local government to get some funds to build a second bridge - 2 lanes North, and 2 lanes South,” said one Facebook commentor.

“Imagine the chaos if the bridge has to close – still find it bizarre that they haven’t built a new bridge to cope with today’s traffic – it’s a choke on North Queensland,” said another.

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