Several people dead in a fire accident on the Colorado Highway

Several people died Thursday in a fire accident involving several vehicles and three semi-trailers.
(Rescue in the west subway)

Several people died on Thursday when a trailer was engulfed in stationary traffic that caused explosions and flames on a Colorado highway, authorities said.

The incident occurred just before 5 pm According to a preliminary investigation, a truck driver lost control as he was heading east on Interstate 70 in the Lakewood suburb of Denver. The collision provoked a chain reaction and a spill of diesel fuel, said Lakewood police spokesman Ty Countryman at the Denver Post.

"It seems like one of the worst accidents we've had in Lakewood," he said.

The fleeing truck driver survived. At least one truck was carrying wood, another was carrying gravel and the third was probably carrying mattresses, reported KDVR-TV.

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Lakewood police tweeted that there had been several deaths but did not give a specific figure. Six people were taken to the hospital. Their conditions have not been disclosed, according to the newspaper.

The lanes in both directions were closed and should remain so until Friday morning.