I-95 Collapsed in Philadelphia

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Source: Tanker fire causes part of Interstate 95 in Philadelphia to collapse; complete rebuild expected to take 'months': Updates

A tanker truck fire shut down I-95 in both directions after an elevated portion of the heavily traveled interstate collapsed in Philadelphia on Sunday morning, state officials said, raising concerns about possible travel headaches throughout the Northeast.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said the fire closed all lanes between Exit 25 and Exit 32, which includes Allegheny Avenue, Castor Avenue, Academy Road, and Linden Avenue.

Philadelphia Fire Department Captain Derek Bowmer said emergency crews responded shortly before 6:30 a.m. local time after receiving a report of a vehicle being on fire on the interstate. Authorities later identified the vehicle as a gasoline tanker truck that may have been carrying hundreds of gallons of gasoline.

The fire took about an hour to get under control. City and state officials are "responding to address impacts to residents in the area and travelers affected by the road closure," the state fire department said in a statement to USA TODAY.

In a Sunday night update, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at least one vehicle was still trapped under the collapsed roadway but there were no immediate reports of injuries. "We’re still working to identify any individual or individuals who may have been caught in the fire and the collapse," he said.

Interstate 95 is the main north-south highway on the East Coast and stretches from Florida through Maine to Canada.

"Travelers should expect delays and plan alternative travel routes, especially while planning for their weekday commute," the City of Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management said.
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When bad comes to worse.
 
It is unfortunate that the government and fire department could not prevent i-95 from collapsing because of fire damage. Hopefully, most of the victims can quickly recover from i-95 collapsing on them, or breathing toxic smoke from the gas fire.
 
froggyboy604 said:
It is unfortunate that the government and fire department could not prevent i-95 from collapsing because of fire damage. Hopefully, most of the victims can quickly recover from i-95 collapsing on them, or breathing toxic smoke from the gas fire.
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Their job is to fix it. I'd say it happened so quickly there was nothing they could do. The contracted construction crew would have to build it back and maybe find a better-engineered solution. Then we'll get taxed more and maybe our gas would cost a little more as well. But there would be a bunch of people mad because they can't afford to live as the taxes get higher to fund this.
 
I remember reading this on another site as well. I've never heard of a road collapsing due to an extreme fire such as this. More times than not, the fire is able to be put out & it's not from a tanker!
 
froggyboy604 said:
It is unfortunate that the government and fire department could not prevent i-95 from collapsing because of fire damage. Hopefully, most of the victims can quickly recover from i-95 collapsing on them, or breathing toxic smoke from the gas fire.
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The challenge we have with most governments is being slow to react to emergencies. It can be frustrating most times.
 
Henrywrites said:
The challenge we have with most governments is being slow to react to emergencies. It can be frustrating most times.
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It is very frustrating, but a lot of governments don't have enough money to hire enough skilled workers and buy enough fire fighting equipment to put out big road fires out quickly, and maintain fire fighting equipment.
 
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