Despite the cooler temperatures, fire danger is still a risk in the area and commuters along witnessed a reminder to that Monday evening when a vehicle accident led to a multi-acre fire that shut down lanes of Highway 50 in the height of the commute.
At approximately 5:30 p.m. Monday, units were dispatched to a vehicle accident involving a recreational vehicle and two passenger cars along the westbound lanes if Highway 50 near the Bass Lake Grade in El Dorado Hills. The driver of the one of the passenger cars was killed in the collision.
A fire broke out as a result of the crash and spread to the dry vegetation and quickly spread, prompting the California Highway Patrol to close the Westbound Lanes of Highway 50. Multiple agencies responded to the blaze and worked to contain it on both the land and from the air.
At 6:15 p.m., the El Dorado Hills Fire Department, lead agency on the incident, reported that forward progress had been stopped on the fire. The size of the fire is estimated to 2-3 acres and firefighters are expected to be on sight late into the evening mopping up.
The highway was partially reopened after a long delay and back up during the evening commute. Clean up of the burned RV is expected to keep a portion of the westbound lanes closed into the evening.
The driver who was killed in the collision has since been identified by the authorities as Eric West, 55. The occupants of the recreational vehicle and the other passenger car reportedly suffered minor injuries, according to the California Highway Patrol.