So I’m heading home on the Inner Loop of the Capital Beltway and just past Rockville Pike (Wisconsin Avenue) I see flashing blue lights (MD State Troopers). On the Outer Loop I see flashing red and white lights; lots of them.

Then I realize what’s going on, inasmuch as I can pick up from travelling at 60-something miles an hour. All lanes are blocked, traffic is backed up, and there are clouds of smoke. This did not look good…

A little past 11:30, traffic was backed up a little over two miles, so it couldn’t have happened much earlier.