A multi-vehicle accident and fire on I-95 southbound just before 5:30 a.m. today caused gridlock throughout Westport.
And it won’t ease for a while. Officials estimated this morning that I-95 in that area could be closed for several days.
Westbound Post Road traffic, just before noon. The cross streets are Myrtle Avenue (left) and Imperial Avenue (right). (Drone photo/Charlie Scott)
The crash — involving 2 tractor-trailers and a passenger vehicle — ignited a blaze in a tanker truck with 8,500 gallons of gasoline, underneath Fairfield Avenue at Exit 15. None of the occupants were hurt, though a firefighter suffered a leg injury. (Click here for a video of the fire.)
The I-95 accident and fire earlier today. (Photo/Norwalk Fire Department)
Traffic was closed in both directions, and on surrounding streets. Fairfield Avenue connects Martin Luther King Boulevard and Connecticut Avenue.
Officials are checking for damage to the overpass.
The aftermath of this morning’s tanker fire. The truck cannot be moved until all contents are offloaded. (Photo courtesy of News12 Connecticut)
The result was horrendous traffic, throughout Westport.
The Post Road was backed up for miles at rush hour. Alternate routes paralleling I-95, as well as to the Merritt Parkway, were also jammed.
The Post Road, at Wilton Road and Riverside Avenue. (Photo/Craig Bergamo)
Large trucks — including semis — jammed the Post Road. Some headed west on Greens Farms Road, but had to turn right on Imperial Avenue because they could not cross the Cribari Bridge.
That created additional traffic, at the Imperial/Post Road East traffic light.
Officials urge drivers — particularly truckers — to use alternate routes, including I-84 and I-87, if possible. Signs throughout the state, and in New York and Rhode Island, urge motorists to avoid the area.
Another view of the accident and fire. (Facebook screenshot courtesy of Kalin Barber)