Fire breaks out in car in Hvalfjörður tunnel

A fire broke out in a car in the Hvalfjörður tunnel on Tuesday evening, mbl.is reports. No one was injured, and the fire had been extinguished before emergency responders arrived.

The tunnel was closed for a short time but has since reopened to traffic. Firefighters are clearing the tunnel.

Jens Ragnarsson, chief of the Akranes and Hvalfjarðarsveit fire service, said the service received the call at 19:06 and immediately dispatched a fire engine. Before the first engine arrived, however, the service was informed by Neyðarlínan, Iceland’s emergency communications centre, that the fire had been put out.

The fire started on the Akranes side of the tunnel. Ragnarsson said he did not know how it had been extinguished, but noted that fire extinguishers are placed several dozen metres apart throughout the tunnel.