A van traveling through South Whidbey sustained heavy damage on Sunday morning when its contents caught fire.

According to South Whidbey Fire/EMS, firefighters responded to the vehicle fire on Highway 525 just north of Honeymoon Bay Road around 9:58 a.m. on April 23. A load of hay bales that the van had been carrying caught fire, and had to be removed in order to fully extinguish the fire. The car’s occupants were uninjured and able to safely exit the vehicle.

Public Information Officer Jon Gabelein said the van was towed from the scene.

“The owner had purchased the hay from a North Whidbey location and was in the process of transporting it to her animals at her home,” he said.

The fire may have been caused by heat from the car’s engine igniting the hay.

“While a lot of the hay had at least some charring, the rest of it may be usable after it dries,” Gabelein said.

During the incident, traffic was rerouted onto Bush Point and Mutiny Bay roads for about an hour.

Photo provided by South Whidbey Fire/EMS A vehicle fire on Highway 525 caused traffic to take a detour on Sunday morning.