DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,
Video from the scene shows a massive slab, covering an entire section of the northbound lanes, collapsed onto the surface roadway in northeast Philadelphia.
A large vehicle fire under an elevated section of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia has caused a huge portion of the highway to collapse, closing it in both directions.
Video from the scene showed a massive slab covering an entire section of the northbound lanes collapsed onto the surface roadway in northeast Philadelphia. Officials said there were no immediate reports of injuries.
Captain Derek Bowmer of the Philadelphia Fire Department said emergency crews responding shortly before 6:30am (10:30 GMT) on Sunday to an accident report found heavy fire from a vehicle or vehicles.
Early reports indicated a vehicle may have been a tanker truck, but officials said that had not yet been confirmed. The fire was reported to be under control.
Interstate 95 is the main highway in the eastern United States linking major centres such as New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, DC and running all the way south to Florida state.
Bowmer said the northbound lanes were gone and the southbound lanes were “compromised” because of the heat from the fire.
He also said runoff from the fire or perhaps compromised gas lines were causing explosions underground. Officials said they were also concerned about the environmental impacts of runoff into the nearby Delaware River.
“Today’s going to be a long day. And obviously, with 95 northbound gone and southbound questionable, it’s going to be even longer than that,” said Dominick Mireles, director of Philadelphia’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM).
Heavy construction equipment would be required to start to remove the debris, he said.
The OEM said other streets were closed for the response and urged people to avoid the area. They also said they planned to launch a drone to assess the damage.
