Drivers asked to avoid I-80 near airport due to low visibility caused by smoke from afternoon fire, dust storms

Photo: Salt Lake City Police

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, June 19, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — Interstate 80 has reopened after a fire west of the turnoff for the Salt Lake City International Airport.

The fire was a result of wind-whipped flames sparked by a transformer explosion. Multiple agencies responded to the blaze.

A tweet confirming the road was closed went out at 3:40 p.m.:

“I-80 is closed in both directions at 5600 West in Salt Lake as crews are battling a grass fire started from a transformer explosion,” says a Utah Highway Patrol tweet.

The roadway was reopened before 5 p.m., UHP officials confirmed, but drivers are still being advised to avoid the area if possible due to continued high winds and dust storms, now combined with smoke remaining from the fire.

High winds are also being investigated as the cause of a fatal motorcycle crash Sunday in Tooele County near the Salt Lake County border. For more information on that accident, click here.

The location of the I 80 road closure is marked with a red pin Image Google Maps

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