UPDATE: North and south traffic reopens after hay fire closes down I-39 between Plover, Bancroft

Metro Wire Staff

Traffic on I-39 between Plover and Bancroft is moving again.

A semi-truck hauling hay stopped on I-39 southbound Sunday afternoon after its load caught fire at about 12:40 p.m. The quick-thinking motorist disconnected his truck from the load, leaving just the bed and hay burning.

As a result, heavy black smoke was drifting across the roadway, forcing law enforcement and fire crews to shut down northbound lanes beginning at County Rd. W.

No one has been injured as a result of the fire. Adams Towing has also been called to the scene.

Firefighters from the DNR, Plover, Bancroft, Almond, and Amherst have all responded. The Portage Co. Highway Department was also called to help sweep hay from the road surface.

Northboard lanes were reopened at about 2:20 p.m. Southbound traffic began moving again at about 3:30 p.m.