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

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

The Sichuan provincial police stated on social media 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.

Police said the fire had been extinguished, there were no injuries, and no one was stranded at the scene. Traffic in the inbound lane resumed normal operation at 2:50 p.m., and the cause of the fire is under further investigation.

A witness, Yang Ling, who requested to use a pseudonym out of fear of reprisal, told The Epoch Times that her family of four was on a road trip from Henan Province to Chengdu when the incident occurred on their way home.

“A large truck loaded with oranges caught fire inside the tunnel,” she said. “We were trapped inside the tunnel, which is more than 1.24 miles long. Everyone abandoned their vehicles and ran out of the tunnel, including pregnant women, the elderly, and children. Some people didn’t even have time to put on their shoes before running out.”

Yang said that when she was running, “it felt like the end of the world.”

“When I got out of the tunnel, it was already filled with thick smoke,” she said. “I didn’t know if it would explode. I thought the car was doomed.”

“I thought I was going to die,” she said. “I even prepared my last words, but I couldn’t make a call because there was no signal. It was really lucky that only the truck burned. The other vehicles did not catch fire, and there were no casualties. We were very fortunate.”

Liu, who also asked to use a pseudonym out of fear of reprisal, told mainland Chinese media that he was a few vehicles behind the burning truck. He said that he heard three loud bangs and that the tunnel and his vehicle were shaking.

Unsure of the situation and fearing an explosion, he said he immediately got out of his vehicle and fled. He noticed that the tunnel was congested, and many rear-end collisions occurred while cars were reversing; his car was also involved in one.

Videos circulating online show the tunnel packed with cars and many people abandoning their vehicles and fleeing toward the exit, asking each other what had happened.

Tang Bing and Gu Xiaohua contributed to this report.