U.S. Highway 59 reopens after closure due to vehicle fire

Traffic was being diverted on U.S. Highway 59 south of Lawrence Monday afternoon but the highway opened again later after a vehicle caught fire near the intersection with Douglas County Road 460.

Sgt. Steve Lewis, a Douglas County Sheriff’s spokesman, said at 3:30 p.m. Monday deputies were assisting Kansas Highway Patrol troopers about 6 miles south of Lawrence near the former Zarco service station off of the highway.

Southbound traffic was being diverted around the incident onto County Road 460, Lewis said. According to scanner traffic northbound traffic was being re-routed also. Both lanes eventually reopened late in the afternoon.

No injuries were reported, according to Kansas Highway Patrol dispatchers.