A section of Interstate 95 in Connecticut will be shut down for several days following a fiery crash.
On Thursday (May 2) morning at around 5:30AM, a tanker truck containing thousands of gallons of fuel collided with a tractor-trailer and a passenger vehicle, as reported by The New York Post.
The blazing fire has prompted the closure of the I-95 near exit 15 in Norwalk - a city of more than 90,000 people.
It has also shut down both sides of the busy highway, disrupting the major artery that links New York and New England.
The tanker was carrying a load of about 8,500 gallons when it slammed into the two vehicles beneath the Fairfield Avenue bridge, officials revealed.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said that while there were no severe injuries in the accident, the collision has caused serious damage to the bridge above it.
"The heat from the burning fuel compromised some of the bridge, so that bridge is going to have to come down and that demolition is going to start first thing tomorrow morning,” he explained, as cited by Huffington Post.
Check out the incident below:A section of the major highway affected by the blaze will now remain closed.
While the bridge was less than 10 years old, “the damage was pretty severe due to the amount of gasoline that was in the tanker ignited directly underneath the bridge structure,” Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said, adding, “The steel did begin to overheat and warp.”
Scott Hill, chief engineer for the Connecticut Department of Transportation, interjected that the overpass didn’t seem to be in danger of collapsing.
Furthermore, Eucalitto said that it’s unsafe to allow any traffic to pass in either direction, therefore the entire bridge has to be removed.
About 150,000 vehicles travel through the I-95 in Norwalk daily, according to traffic data from the state’s Department of Transportation, per The New York Times.
A text was sent to residents in Connecticut advising them to stay away from the area. A notice was also given to trucking companies to take alternative routes like I-84.
It's unclear if the bridge will reopen on Monday. Lamont has urged employers to allow employees to work from home on Friday.
Police are investigating the cause of the crash. No charges have been filed.
