Tunnel through Rockies closed by man spraying fire extinguishers at cars

A tunnel that carries Interstate 70 through Colorado’s Rocky Mountains was forced to close on Sunday when a man on foot sprayed traffic with fire extinguishers, the state’s Department of Transportation said.

The situation began around 3:20 p.m. near the west entrance of the Eisenhower Tunnel. A man was put off an eastbound Greyhound bus before it entered the tunnel, said highway agency spokesman Tim Hoover.

In a statement to TV station KDVR, Greyhound said the man — “the disgruntled passenger” — asked to be let off the bus during a stop at the brake check area. “For the safety of our passengers and driver, the passenger was released and local authorities were contacted immediately,” the statement said.

He hung around the maintenance yard for a while and then, around 5 p.m., walked into the westbound lanes of traffic and entered the tunnel. He took fire extinguishers from an emergency cabinet in the tunnel and began spraying them at cars.

Highway workers closed the tunnel for about 15 minutes, and the man was detained with the help of law enforcement agents from Summit County and the Colorado State Patrol.

The man was arrested on suspicion of criminal tampering, obstruction of a roadway and throwing missiles at vehicles. Upon his release, he was given a bus ticket to Denver, the Summit County sheriff’s office said.

There were no reports of injuries or damaged vehicles, but Hoover called the incident “alarming” and “highly problematic.”

The twin-bore tunnel — officially the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel — is 1.7 miles long. It is on the interstate 60 miles west of Denver.