Truck Catches Fire in Tunnel on Beijing–Kunming Expressway, Causing Panic

The fire was accompanied by 3 loud bangs and thick smoke in the tunnel, witnesses said.

A Chinese woman wears a protective mask as she crosses a nearly empty intersection in Beijing, China, on Feb. 13, 2020. Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

A fire broke out accompanied by loud bangs in the Gujiashan Tunnel on the G5 Beijing-Kunming Expressway, causing panic on Feb. 23, the 7th day of the Chinese New Year holiday, which this year is celebrated from Feb. 17 to March 3.

The Sichuan provincial police stated on its official social media account that a freight truck carrying fruit suddenly caught fire at approximately 10:50 a.m. inside the Gujiashan Tunnel in the outbound direction at mile 921 of the G5 Beijing-Kunming Expressway Guangxi-Shaanxi Section.