DAVIE, Fla. – A vehicle fire caused major delays on a South Florida highway on Friday afternoon.
Sky 10 was over the scene on the westbound lanes of I-595 near the Nob Hill Road exit where a large bus could be seen on fire.
All westbound lanes of the highway were closed around 3 p.m. as firefighters worked to extinguish the fire.
At one point, the double-decker tour bus from Miami Tours, a company out of Miami Beach, was seen completely engulfed in flames.
Police said around 50 passengers were able to evacuate the bus. They waited under tents on the side of the highway for several hours until another bus could come and pick them up.
One of the passengers on that bus was Fillippo Muzifalconi, an Italian tourist.
He says a passing car signaled to the driver that something was wrong and the driver then pulled over.
“The driver immediately opened the door and we ran out,” said Muzifalconi. “The driver, I think he was a hero. He got out of the bus as the last person, waiting for everyone.”
The fire has since been extinguished.
Authorities said no injuries were reported.
Muzifalconi believes it could have ended much worse. The final passengers stepped off that bus just before it became fully engulfed.
“It was already full of smoke,” he said. “The last people going out, they were really in a difficult situation.”
The tourists on that bus told Local 10 News they were offered a full refund for their trip.