Traffic snarled in aftermath of fiery fatal big rig crash on I-880 in San Leandro

SAN LEANDRO, Calif. (KGO) -- The fiery crash scene tied up traffic on northbound Interstate 880 all morning. The driver was killed in the crash.

The aftermath was barely recognizable and twisted metal lay on the Davis Street off-ramp, which is still closed. It caused a traffic backup Wednesday morning.

The hazmat team still has a lot of work to do. They have to remove all the dirt here from this median and replace it because at least 1,000 gallons of motor oil spilled. So the off-ramp is still closed, but they have reopened all lanes of 880.

The aftermath is tough to look at, a man died in the crash. The big rig he was driving is hardly recognizable. There was so much damage, investigators didn't even know what he was hauling, they just knew it spilled and could be dangerous.

"Initially, it was hard because didn't know what it was carrying. Any markings or placards ended up burning," said California Highway Patrol officer Sgt. Brian Samms.

The fire broke out when the truck hit the concrete divider. The driver was not able to escape and was killed. Investigators haven't found any skid marks.

"There's no indicators of another vehicle being involved yet. And there's no indicators of brake application being applied before the collision. Often when this occurs it could be someone falling asleep or a medical issue," Samms said.

It happened at 4 a.m. on northbound I-880 in San Leandro. Investigators had to shut down one lane and the Davis off-ramp. They got the debris cleared out and the lane reopened by 8 a.m., but the backup by then was extensive.

"This is I-880, so even on a good day traffic is miserable through here," Samms said.

There was no information yet on the victim, except that he working for an oil company in San Jose.