A school bus with no children aboard caught fire Tuesday morning on a Coon Rapids highway, briefly backing up rush-hour traffic.

The Anoka-Hennepin School District bus pulled over on westbound Hwy. 10 near Hanson Boulevard as smoke began pouring out of the engine compartment just before 8 a.m.

The driver and a paraprofessional educator on board escaped without injury, district spokesman Derrick Williams said. The bus was on its way to its first stop as part of a summer program, Williams added.

Traffic was halted for about 30 minutes as fire rigs doused the flames.

Tim Harlow, Paul Walsh