Richmond railway bridge catches fire, produces major smoke

A partly decommissioned railway trestle in Richmond caught fire on Thursday evening.

Reports of heavy smoke near the south end of the Oak Street Bridge came in around 8 p.m., with the plume visible from across Metro Vancouver.

Video from the scene shows flames engulfing the Marpole Railroad Bridge, which was originally constructed in 1902.

An eyewitness tells Global News that the fire appeared to have started in a nearby structure along the water, before spreading to the trestle.

Late Wednesday, Metro Vancouver issued an Air Quality Bulletin for all sections of the region due to the smoke, recommending anyone feeling adverse effects to move indoors.

On social media, Vancouver Police says traffic in both directions on the Oak Street Bridge has been closed.

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Additionally, operations at Vancouver International Airport have not been impacted, according to YVR online.

Global News has reached out to Richmond Fire-Rescue and Richmond RCMP for information about the blaze.

More to come…