Overview
- A truck trailer carrying compressed paper caught fire on the A9 near Denkendorf on Thursday afternoon after the driver and other road users noticed smoke and the 37-year-old driver separated the tractor from the trailer.
- The trailer burned for an extended period because it was loaded with pressed paper in large 'Big Pack' bales that firefighters had to remove with technical equipment and douse sequentially.
- Emergency teams from multiple local fire brigades and the Autobahnmeisterei repeatedly closed the A9 in the Nürnberg direction, at times leaving only the left lane open while crews worked.
- Police reported that firefighting, recovery and cleaning operations concluded around 21:30 with all three lanes reopened, no injuries, and estimated trailer damage of about €15,000; the cause remains under investigation.
- Compacted paper is highly combustible and holds hotspots inside dense bales, a factor that can stretch firefighting time and cause long highway disruptions, a risk planners and drivers should note when cargo type is involved.