Major crashes involving melons, trash on 5 Freeway snarl traffic

Big rig crash shuts down major transition road in Boyle Heights

The road will be closed for an undetermined amount of time, according to the CHP.

LOS ANGELES - Two major traffic crashes - one involving scattered melons and the other leaving a large pile of trash on fire - shut down major roads on the 5 Freeway in Boyle Heights and Tustin Tuesday morning.

What we know:

A large 18-wheeler, a semi-truck carrying a load of melons, overturned on the transition road Monday just after 11 p.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

Following the collision, a hard closure of the transition road was requested and implemented.

The incident blocked at least one lane, making it impassable for other vehicles.

A diesel spill was reported but has since been contained, with no hazardous materials (hazmat) team needed for the cleanup.

The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) assisted by shutting down the Mission Road on-ramp to southbound I-5.

A SigAlert was issued due to the significant traffic disruption and has since been extended to account for ongoing recovery efforts. All lanes have since reopened.

Meanwhile in the Tustin area, a garbage truck apparently lost its load, which caught on fire on the northbound 5 Freeway at Fourth Street. The incident happened in the middle of the 5 Freeway right by the 55 Freeway.