A Sound Transit bus caught fire on I-405 near I-90 early on Oct. 14, delaying early morning traffic but leaving no one injured due to the work of a Bellevue fire inspector onboard.

The bus heading northbound on I-405 caught fire near the lefthand rear tire at around 6:40 a.m. A Bellevue fire inspector who happened to be onboard heard a pop and had the driver pull over.

After finding a small but growing fire, the two men evacuated the bus. No one was injured.

“Inspector and bus driver did a great, job, keeping everyone calm and evacuating the bus…Thank goodness we had that inspector on board, because it was kind of a hectic scene,” said Bellevue Fire spokesperson Ryan Armstrong.

Two vehicles driving by the scene  stopped and tried to use their car extinguishers on the fire, but it was growing rapidly enough that they were unable to make a dent in the flames. By the time that the Bellevue Fire Department arrived, the entire rear of the bus was on fire.

Two fire engines and a ladder truck responded and were able to extinguish the fire. Armstrong credited the quick response, saying that there was no way that one engine could have extinguished the fire.

The resulting traffic lengthened the commute between Federal Way and Bellevue to two hours during the peak rush hour, completely jamming the roadways, according to the state Department of Transportation.

Passengers were taken to the nearby Park and Ride by Sound Transit, where alternate transportation was provided.

There was no cause identified at the time, according to State Trooper Chris Webb. An investigation is ongoing.