DETROIT, MI — A trailer caught fire while being hauled to Canada on the Ambassador Bridge on Tuesday, halting international traffic for hours. Detroit firefighters doused the flames and no injuries were reported, but the blaze left travelers and truck drivers stranded on the bridge in the middle of the day.
“We appreciate the swift action of the Detroit Fire Dept. and the accommodation by border agencies to restore border traffic after an emergency event today,” said Ambassador Bridge spokesman Mickey Blashfield in a statement after the crossing was reopened. “Our new enhancement span would have accommodated the free flow of traffic without delay today, were it not for bureaucratic red-tape.” Trucking magnate Matty Moroun’s Detroit International Bridge Company has wanted for years to expand the bridge with a second span alongside the first.
But he wants to build it over a closed riverfront park that residents have fought to preserve and reopen. And despite years of losing court battles and public backlash, Moroun is still fighting for a second Detroit River crossing.
