UPDATE: West Virginia Turnpike cleanup continues into Friday

BECKLEY, W.Va. (WVVA) - UPDATE: The West Virginia Turnpike cleanup following the tractor trailer crash that occurred on Thursday will continue into Friday.

Both lanes will be open during the cleanup.

The crash occurred at mile marker 62, near the Mossy exit. The truck was carrying ammonium nitrate.

Emergency crews worked throughout the Thursday and were able to prevent materials from the crash from entering Paint Creek. Southbound lanes reopened a little after 9:30 a.m. Thursday, but northbound lanes remained closed all day.

UPDATE: The West Virginia Turnpike northbound could be closed for several hours according to The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP). The southbound lanes are open.

Turnpike Detour A will be in effect until the Turnpike reopens. Traffic heading north will take the North Beckley Exit (Exit 48) to US 19, then take US 19 to connect with Interstate 79 near Sutton. The detour is approximately 125 miles.

The WVDEP along with WVDEP’s Homeland Security and Emergency Response, Hazardous Waste, and Environmental Enforcement units, West Virginia State Police, the State Fire Marshal, Fayette County Emergency Management, and fire department crews from Charleston, Pax, and Mt. Hope have responded to the tractor trailer crash on I-77

According to the WVDEP, the crash occurred on the West Virginia Turnpike near mile marker 62 in Fayette County Thursday morning. The truck was headed northbound and hauling approximately 4,500 gallons of an ammonium nitrate and water solution.

The material the truck was carrying was Ammonium nitrate, which is predominantly used as a fertilizer in agriculture.

No evacuations orders have been issued at this time.

An environmental contractor, Evergreen Environmental, is currently on site to remediate the area and an additional contractor is en route to the scene to pump the remaining product from the tractor trailer.

No timetable for completion of the cleanup has been set at this time.

UPDATE: The Mount Hope Fire Department posted that the tractor-trailer was carrying Ammonium Nitrate. The driver sustained minor injuries. The turnpike is closed in both North and South bound lanes. Turnpike Detour A is in effect.

Raleigh County dispatchers said traffic is shutdown between Mossy and Paint Creek at this time due to a motor vehicle accident.

According to 911 operators in Fayette County, the accident happened at mile marker 61 along the Fayette/ Kanawha County border.

Both the North and Southbound lanes are closed between those two exits at this time and traffic is currently being diverted to Deep Water Mountain Road.

The Pax Fire Dept. is currently working the scene.

Stay with WVVA for the latest on this developing story.

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