Commerce, Industrial Center traffic clogged with motorists avoiding fiery coach.

Traffic was snarled for miles this morning on the southbound
I-5 due to a passenger bus that caught fire and burned on the side of the road.

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Driver Jesus Juan Garcia was heading south on the freeway
near Magic Mountain Parkway at 4:30 a.m., piloting a Coach America bus with 20
passengers, when he realized that his rear brakes were not working properly.

Garcia told CHP officers that he saw “smoke and sparks”
coming from the rear of the bus and was able to stop the bus just south of the Magic
Mountain Parkway offramp. All passengers exited
the bus without incident and were a safe distance away when the brake fire grew
and engulfed the entire coach.

At the time of the blaze, southbound I-5 was reduced to one
land of traffic while L.A. County
firefighters extinguished the flames.

No passengers or fire department personnel were injured as a
result of the incident.