Firefighters are at the scene of an excavation operation beneath the 110 Freeway at Channel Street in San Pedro that has shut down all lanes in both directions as they attempt to extinguish a fire inside a freeway tunnel.
The Los Angeles Fire Department started battling the fire at 7:50 p.m. Monday evening, May 5, and said it believed the blaze was started by people living in a homeless encampment.
LAFD found the remnants of a fire believed to have been started by homeless individuals, said LAFD spokeswoman Lyndsey Lantz.
A Caltrans highway engineer is at the scene and LAFD Incident Command is proceeding cautiously and prioritizing firefighter safety, while working to extinguish the fire inside the confined space, Lantz said.
At 10:49 p.m. the California Highway Patrol said it shut down the 110 Freeway in both directions.
Due to construction work on the tunnel, the north and southbound lanes of the 110 will be closed for an unknown duration, according to the CHP.
No injuries had been reported.