Chariots of fire: A truck burns yesterday in the ninth day of the nationwide Nicaraguan transportation workers strike. Protestors set two trucks purportedly driven by non-strikers and police arrested 35 people, news reports said.

Marenco Nelson | EFE

The Nicaraguan transport strike crept along into its second week yesterday with tensions flaring. Protestors set two alleged scab trucks on fire and at least 35 people were arrested in the ensuing clashes with police on the Panamerican Highway in northern Nicaragua.

Bus drivers and truckers in 152 of 153 the country's municipalities entered the ninth day of the strike yesterday, after transport officials and union leaders failed to make a deal in seven hours of negotiations the night before.

Motorists are demanding a government freeze on fuel prices, which in Nicaragua have risen to $4.48 a gallon for super unleaded and $4.49 for diesel.

Some 25,000 taxis, 7,000 trucks, 7,500 regional buses and 1,200 city buses are still running, various news media reported.

A U.S. Embassy communiqué recommended motorists keep their fuel tanks at least three-quarters full and maintain a week's supply of food and water.