A Thursday morning fire inside La Esperanza Tortilla Factory in Canutillo brought traffic in the Upper Valley to a crawl, as northbound lanes on the 7200 block of Doniphan Drive were shut down during the height of the commute. Emergency crews remained on scene while the incident unfolded through the morning rush.
According to KFOX-TV, firefighters closed northbound Doniphan at Las Tuna Avenue while they worked to knock down the fire inside the tortilla factory. The outlet shared images from the scene that showed responders staged near the building as lanes were blocked off.
KVIA reports that the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office issued a traffic alert stating the 7200 block of Doniphan northbound was closed and urging drivers to use alternate routes and expect delays. KVIA noted it had reached out to the sheriff’s office for more details while crews continued to operate at the scene.
Drivers headed north on Doniphan toward Las Tuna were forced onto nearby streets, which backed up quickly as the closure collided with the morning commute, according to KVIA. Officials had not released any information about possible injuries or what sparked the blaze, and the incident was still being described as an active, developing situation.
