CT officials: I-95 to be shut down for extended period following fiery crash involving gas tanker
A fiery crash involving a tractor-trailer and a gas tanker led to both sides of Interstate 95 in Norwalk being shut down on Thursday as state officials assessed damages to utilities and a bridge in the area.
The crash was reported around 5 a.m. when state troopers learned of a collision involving two commercial vehicles and a passenger vehicle that led to multiple fires on I-95 South near Exit 15 at the Fairfield Avenue overpass, according to Connecticut State Police.
No serious injuries were reported, Gov. Ned Lamont said at a press briefing Thursday morning.
Local fire crews responded to put out the vehicle fires. Crews from the state Department of Transportation, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and Eversource also responded to the scene.
The crash led to both sides of I-95 being shut down. Lamont said state officials notified surrounding states and truck companies of the closure and advised them to seek alternate routes using I-84 or I-87.
The governor said crews in the morning hours were still assessing damages to utilities and the bridge that serves as an overpass and were working to get a better idea of when I-95 could re-open.
“I know what an incredible inconvenience this is for people,” Lamont said, adding that he spoke to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg in the morning and briefed him on the situation. “And all I can ask you to do is stay away from that area the best you can. The traffic jams are horrendous.”
Anyone who can stay home and avoid the area altogether has been advised to do so, Lamont said. He also encouraged anyone who needs to travel to use public transportation if possible.
“We are working with the City of Norwalk to reroute traffic around the city streets,” Paul Rizzo, bureau chief of highway operations for the DOT, said at the news briefing. “We have detours set up on I-95 to get the traffic around the incident.”
According to Scott Hill, bureau chief of Engineering and Construction at the DOT, the bridge in the area of the crash sustained damages, but crews were still assessing to what extent in the late morning hours.
“I just want to stress that the bridge is stable,” Hill said. “We need to finish the police investigation to look at the bridge.”
“There is damage to the bridge, so I want to make sure everybody knows that,” Hill added. “But it’s not a collapse issue and the area is safe.”
Hill said an engineer would need to assess the bridge, as the gasoline involved in the crash could have caused intense heat and possibly deformed the steel.
Lamont said state officials in the early afternoon hours would likely have an update as to when I-95 could re-open.