Both the upper and lower decks of Interstate 35 have been reopened following a single truck wreck that closed a portion of the Interstate in Austin early on Thursday morning.
The accident happened on Thursday, February 4th at around 1 a.m. in Austin, Texas.
According to KXAN News, the truck driver was heading south on I-35 near East 51st street when they lost control of the tractor trailer. The wreck separated the cab from the trailer and sent the cab crashing to the portion of I-35 below.
Approximately 100 gallons of diesel fuel were spilled in the incident and flowed down a storm drain, prompting hazmat teams to respond to the scene.
We’re live on @KVUE with a traffic update for you. A deadly crash involving a semi-truck early this morning has caused damage to the upper deck of 1-35. The frontage road is still closed off. There was also 100 gallons of diesel spilled on the road which is still being cleaned. pic.twitter.com/TFdH4VLJWR
— Hannah Rucker KVUE (@suphannahrucker) February 4, 2021
“That fuel spill came down through the drainage areas and on to the surface frontage road down below,” Sgt. Robert Barger said. “APD responded to that, determined that the spill after doing some mitigation, determined that the spill required a hazmat response.”
The unnamed truck driver was killed in the crash. No other vehicles were involved. Police are still investigating the reason behind the crash.
Traffic backups were heavy throughout the duration of the cleanup. All lanes of I-35 were reopened by noon on Thursday.