CFA crews from both towns responded at 7.50 pm, following a call from the driver who noticed the rear section of his trailer was on fire.

By the time firefighters arrived the rear section of the truck was burning intensely and thermal imaging and cutting equipment was used to fight the fire from the front of the trailer.

Once the fire was put out and the truck’s cargo of twenty grocery pallets unloaded, the damaged trailer was brought to Warragul by a prime mover and heavy haulage vehicle.

The road surface was subsequently given the all clear by VicRoads and the freeway reopened at 2.30 am.

Some of the fire crews who attended the scene had only just returned from a false alarm in Ellinbank.