Colin Atagi

The (Palm Springs, Calif.) Desert Sun

INDIO, Calif. — A semi-truck carrying frozen chicken collided with a truck carrying thousands of bees in Southern California, creating a fiery crash that cooked the chicken.

The California Highway Patrol says the crash on Interstate 10 near Coachella, Calif., occurred shortly after 7 a.m. Monday leaving hundreds of motorists — including Super Bowl attendees — stuck in traffic for hours.

As the trucks traveled west, one of the drivers tried to pass the slower-moving semi-truck, clipping it in the process, California Highway Patrol Officer Stephanie Hamilton said.

The driver — Phoenix resident Eduardo Garcia, 45 — lost control of his vehicle that was carrying frozen chicken and crashed. His truck was destroyed in the fire, resulting in smoke that was visible across the Coachella Valley.

"It was as bad as it could be. Toxic," said Donald Wesley, a trucker who was stuck in traffic.

Stacks of barbecued chicken piled up in the front of the truck's charred remains. But most of the 25,000 pounds of frozen chicken spilled out of their boxes and were left in a slimy heap along the road.

Photos showed chunks of blackened, highway-roasted chicken.

The crash closed the interstate's westbound lanes as highway patrol officers diverted traffic through the center divider. Road crews removed what was left of the truck and cleaned the scene of debris and a diesel fuel spill.

The second truck, which was transporting the bees, was operable and parked on a side road.

"I don't think the bees are causing the problem," Hamilton said of the traffic delay.

Garcia was taken to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs, Calif., for minor injuries to his face, Hamilton said.

The other truck driver, Roberto Diaz, 60, of Miami, was not injured, but declined to discuss the accident with reporters.

Diaz was hauling thousands of bees and many of them were buzzing around after the rear of the truck was busted open.

A beekeeper arrived to help remove the bees. But dozens of them remained on the freeway and slowly died along the road.

Wesley said drivers who were closest to the collision site kept their windows shut to avoid getting stung by the bees.

All lanes reopened Monday afternoon.

Several motorists who had been in Glendale, Ariz., wore clothing with Seattle Seahawks or New England Patriots logos.

"It's sort of adding insult to injury," said Los Angeles resident Stanley Payne, 45, who wore a Seahawks jersey. "I was so upset last night, and the drive home isn't much better."

Contributing: The Associated Press.