Raging inferno erupts inside major Boston tunnel after three-car pileup, snarling holiday traffic

A three-car pileup sparked a fiery explosion inside Boston’s Ted Williams Tunnel Friday, snarling traffic as Memorial Day weekend kicks off.

The crash and subsequent fire occurred shortly after 4 p.m. on the eastbound side of the tunnel, which carries traffic directly to Logan International Airport, according to the Boston Fire Department.

The flames quickly engulfed the three vehicles and sent heavy black smoke billowing through the tunnel, forcing some drivers to abandon their cars and flee to safety.

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Fire officials extinguished the blaze quickly, Deputy Chief James Greene said, but images show that two of the cars and the hood of the third were incinerated.

One of the cars was a hybrid and took longer to extinguish, the department said.

The six people who were riding in the three cars escaped to a local hospital with minor injuries, officials said.

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The cause of the crash and fire, including which car started the blaze, is still under investigation.

Officials shut down the Ted Williams Tunnel for hours after the accident, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation urging drivers to seek alternative routes.

The tunnel is part of a main artery in Boston.

Named after the famed Boston Red Sox outfielder, the Ted Williams Tunnel opened in 1995 as part of the mammoth “Big Dig” project that transformed downtown Boston’s network of roads, bridges and tunnels.

With Post wires