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Truck fire closes I-95 ramp in Richmond Hill
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A tractor trailer hauling tomatoes caught on fire in Richmond Hill early Wednesday morning, closing the northbound I-95 exit ramp at Hwy. 144 for almost 10 hours.

The driver of the 18-wheeler noticed his left rear brakes were on fire around 1 a.m., according to Richmond Hill Fire Chief Vernon Rushing. He said it took about three hours to extinguish the fire, but clearing the wreck took longer.

The ramp e-opened around 10:30 a.m., Rushing said.

“We worked hard, but we got it (the fire) out,” he said.

The driver was hauling around 42,000 pounds of tomatoes, Rushing said. He wasn’t sure where the driver was coming from but said the truck was headed to Love’s Travel Shop on Hwy. 144 for a bite to eat when the fire occurred.

No injuries were reported, and the truck and the tomatoes were destroyed, Rushing said.

“(A) total loss,” he said. 

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