A massive traffic backup Thursday morning in the East Bay that was tied to a large police response in the westbound lanes of I-80 turns out to have been caused by a confrontation with police that led to the fatal shooting of a suspect.

The incident reportedly began as a solo traffic crash on I-80 in Hercules, near Pinole Valley Road. As the Chronicle reports, a detective from the Richmond Police Department encountered a man who had gotten out of his vehicle, a Nissan Altima, and who was allegedly confronting other drivers and striking passing cars with a tire iron.

The Richmond Police Department detective was reportedly on the freeway on his way to work when he came upon the situation, as KTVU reports. The detective pulled over, or was stopped in the freeway like other cars, and had some kind of confrontation with the suspect. It appears the suspect approached the detective with the tire iron, and the detective opened fire.

According to CHP dispatch logs obtained by the Chronicle, the suspect was transported to Highland Hospital in Oakland, where he was later pronounced dead.

The subsequent investigation reportedly attracted dozens of law enforcement vehicles, with officers from both the Richmond and Hercules police departments, Contra Costa County sheriff’s deputies, fire crews, CHP, and Caltrans personnel on site.

Traffic in the area of westbound I-80 and Highway 4 remains congested.

CHP's Oakland office issued a "long-term freeway closure" notice at 10:42 am, recommending that drivers take alternate routes, including I-680. Drivers were also advised to avoid Highway 4.

This incident follows less than a day after a fatal police shooting in San Jose which resulted from a multi-county chase of a carjacking suspect, and in which a police officer was also critically wounded.