MIDVALE, Utah, Oct. 5, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Cleanup and side street traffic jams continued until the early evening Wednesday after a rolled semi carrying potentially dangerous load forced the closure of Interstate 15 during morning rush hour and throughout the day.
Southbound I-15 lanes reopened by about 3 p.m. and northbound lanes opened just before 5 p.m., when the tanker had been safely removed.
Marissa Villaseñor, spokeswoman for Utah Highway Patrol, said the multi-vehicle crash at approximately 9:15 a.m. involved a truck trailer, two vehicles, and a semi hauling ammonium nitrate, which is a combustible and can be explosive. Troopers said the crash was caused after a small trailer attached to a pickup truck came loose.
The second trailer attached to the semi hauling the ammonium nitrate overturned, but did not leak. No one was injured in the crash.
Villaseñor said everyone within a 150-foot radius needed to be evacuated so the scene could be assessed and cleaned up. The interstate was at a standstill for multiple hours, and serious congestion on alternate routes continued through much of the day.
Two large cranes were brought to the scene, and lifted the tanker into the upright position. Moving the tanker was then delayed until officials were convinced they could do it safely.
