Vehicle Fire

As of 9 a.m., traffic was slow on the outer loop of the Baltimore Beltway near Charles Street, due to an accident involving four vehicles. Accidents were slowing traffic on the inner loop of the Baltimore Beltway at Charles Street in Baltimore County and on I-95 northbound at Route 175 in Howard County. A vehicle fire was slowing traffic in the 2900 block of Harford Road. A disabled vehicle was blocking traffic on U.S. 50 eastbound at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The Maryland Transit Administration is warning passengers of delays on the MARC Penn Line between Baltimore and Washington due to mechanical problems.

As of 9 a.m. Friday, traffic was slow on eastbound Route 32 at Burns Crossing Road, due to a vehicle fire. Emergency roadwork was causing slow traffic U.S. 1 northbound at Madeline Avenue in Baltimore County. There were no other major traffic problems reported in the Baltimore area. There were no major delays reported on Baltimore area transit systems.

As of 9 a.m. Tuesday, traffic was slow on eastbound I-70 at the Baltimore Beltway, due to an accident. Accidents were blocking traffic on southbound I-83 near Belfast Road in Baltimore County, Putty Hill Avenue at Harford Road in Baltimore County, Burke Avenue at York Road in Baltimore County, and Route 32 at I-95 in Howard County. A vehicle fire was obstructing traffic on southbound I-95 at Route 198. There were no major delays reported on Baltimore area transit systems.

As of 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, traffic was slow on southbound Route 3 at Johns Hopkins Road in Anne Arundel County, due to an accident. A vehicle fire was disrupting traffic on the outer loop of the Baltimore Beltway near Park Heights Avenue. Some streets around the Washington Monument in the 600 block of N. Charles St. are beginning to have lane closures as part of the preparations for this weekend's Baltimore Book Festival. There were no major delays reported on Baltimore area mass transit systems.

The Maryland state fire marshal's office is investigating a third car fire in the Bel Air area in less than 24 hours, authorities said. Firefighters were called to the 1700 block of Chesterfield Square just after 12:30 a.m. yesterday for a car fire discovered by a passer-by. Damage to the 1999 Mercury Sable is estimated at $500. The fire was started in the interior of the vehicle, according to the fire marshal's office. The other two vehicle fires occurred in the 100 block of McCormick St. and the 100 block of N. Hickory Ave. Anyone with information should call 410-836-4844.

A tractor-trailer hauling fresh flowers collided with a recycling truck on Interstate 895 in Halethorpe yesterday, killing two people and critically injuring a third as the trucks erupted in flames, Maryland Transportation Authority Police said. The crash in the northbound lanes of the Harbor Tunnel Thruway occurred about noon. Investigators did not know late yesterday what caused the collision, said authority Police Chief Gary W. McLhinney. Killed in the accident were the driver of the tractor-trailer and a passenger in the recycling truck.

Had it been real, the loss of two police officers in a fire in the Fort McHenry Tunnel would have been tragic. Instead, it was a learning experience. The two simulated smoke inhalation "deaths" came as emergency crews practiced their response to an imaginary terrorist attack on the tunnel early yesterday. The Maryland Transportation Authority Police briefly closed the tunnel in both directions yesterday to conduct the joint exercise with the Baltimore Fire Department. Transportation Authority Police Chief Gary W. McLhinney said that although authorities had staged fire drills at the tunnel before, yesterday's was the first to simulate a terrorist incident.

Anne Arundel County fire officials are conducting an arson investigation of four vehicle fires that burned Wednesday in Arnold and the Glen Burnie area, and that apparently targeted individuals with a connection to an Arnold plumbing business. The fires occurred between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. and destroyed a car and three pickup trucks that belonged to the owner of Bay State Drains and others connected to the company, said Anne Arundel fire division Chief John M. Scholz. "We can say they all are linked," Scholz said.

WASHINGTON - A key test of a national missile defense system failed this morning when a 4 1/2 -foot "kill vehicle" missed a mock enemy warhead more than 100 miles above the Pacific Ocean - setting back chances for an umbrella system advocated by President Clinton. "We failed to achieve intercept," said Rear Adm. Craig Quigley, a Pentagon spokesman. The mock warhead roared into space at 12:19 a.m. Eastern time atop a missile fired from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, accompanied by a decoy balloon.

Sykesville: Firefighters responded at 1: 58 p.m. Wednesday to a vehicle fire at Ridge Road and Route 26. Units were out 30 minutes. Gamber: Firefighters responded at 8: 51 a.m. Wednesday to a fire alarm in the 1700 block of Doe Drive. Units were out 15 minutes.