Truck fire chokes Sydney’s M5 for hours during afternoon peak

All but one westbound lane on the M5 motorway in Sydney’s south-west have reopened following a garbage truck fire that led to a traffic jam stretching about 10 kilometres, causing hours of delays for drivers during peak hour.

The fire broke out on the truck, which was travelling on the motorway at Milperra in Sydney’s south-west just before 4pm.

One westbound lane reopened about 6pm, before a second lane reopened about 9pm, with one lane remaining closed.

The truck was fully alight when crews arrived, Fire and Rescue NSW acting Superintendent Peter Murray said.

“The driver’s tried to dump the load onto the road, but hasn’t been able to get all of it out and then unfortunately the whole truck is now involved in fire,” he said.

Eight trucks and 25 firefighters attended.

“They’re working to extinguish the fire and contain the runoff of water … given the potential for contamination,” Murray said.

The driver escaped uninjured.

Heavy traffic trailed back past Roselands, about 10 kilometres from the fire during the afternoon peak. Live Traffic NSW said that commuters could “expect significant delays”.

By 7pm, queues had shortened to about six kilometres from the fire, with delays of about an hour after the first westbound lane reopened.

A long trail of headlights extended for kilometres after the sun went down. Commuters were advised to seek an alternative route.

Emergency services remain on site amid a clean-up operation after the burning truck was extinguished.