Truck carrying 44,000 pounds of dried chickpeas catches fire in Death Valley National Park

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) -- A truck carrying 44,000 pounds of dried chickpeas caught fire in Death Valley National Park, according to the National Park Service.

On Nov. 21 around 5:30 a.m., a truck was descending Daylight Pass and Mud Canyon Road, which is closed to commercial truck traffic, when its brakes overheated, causing the truck to catch fire. The truck driver pulled over soon after reaching flat terrain on CA-190, according to NPS.

“When a commercial truck has a wreck or catches on fire, we worry about what it will release into the park,” Superintendent Mike Reynolds said. “However, there’s very little chance that stray chickpeas not cleaned up will become invasive species in the driest place in North America.”

Death Valley National Park, Caltrans, and California Highway Patrol all responded to the fire and Two Star Towing removed the wreckage and cleaned up the remaining dried chickpeas.