Vous trouverez ci-dessous un aperçu de la page Web telle qu’elle s’affichait sur 07/06/2024 (la dernière fois que notre robot a visité cette page). Il s’agit de la version de la page utilisée pour classer vos résultats de recherche. Cette page peut avoir changé depuis sa dernière mise en cache. Pour voir ce qui peut avoir changé (sans le surlignage), accédez à la page actuelle.
Bing n’est pas responsable du contenu de cette page.
Northbound I-95 lanes reopen amid cleanup: Live updates
The southbound lanes, meanwhile, will remain closed through Sunday because the pavement on that side of the highway sustained more damage than the northbound lanes and still need to be repaved, officials said.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
"Crews are making great progress in Norwalk and I am encouraged that we’ll have one side of I-95 open later tonight," Lamont said in a statement. "Completely removing that bridge in less than 36 hours is an impressive feat and is credit to the hard work and dedication of the contractors and Connecticut Department of Transportation crews, who are pushing to get the entire highway fully reopened in both directions by Monday morning."
Telecommunications lines owned by Frontier Communications were damaged in Thursday's crash, resulting in service disruptions for some Norwalk customers, according to the Dallas-based company.
In an emailed statement on Saturday, Frontier officials said they expect to have service restored for the majority of affected customers by the end of the weekend and hope to complete the restoration by the end of the week.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
“We are working diligently to get our customers connected despite the challenges caused by the fuel truck,” company officials wrote in the statement.
The fiery three-vehicle crash that closed Interstate 95 on Thursday unfolded after the 22-year-old driver of a Chevrolet Camaro struck the front end of an oil tanker while attempting to change lanes, according to a police accident report.
The sports car was traveling southbound in the four-lane highway’s far right lane around 5:30 a.m. when it merged into the right center lane occupied by the tanker, leading to the initial collision, Connecticut State Police officials wrote in a two-page crash summary.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
The tanker, which was hauling 8,500 gallons of oil, then veered into the left center lane, struck a tractor-trailer and burst into flames before coming to a stop directly under the Fairfield Avenue overpass.
Both sides of the bridge were torn down shortly after noon, leaving large amounts of debris piled below. Following demolition, "clean-up mode" began, DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said. Payloaders snatched the rubble and piled it off to the side of the highway, where other vehicles scooped and lifted it out of sight of the live feed.
"They made really great progress once that equipment was here," Morgan said. "But as you can see on the video feed ... there's still a lot of work for us to do but we're still optimistic that we'll meet that Monday morning deadline."
By 10 a.m., crews had completely knocked down the side of the bridge that used to sit above I-95's northbound lanes. On the other side, an excavator punctured concrete barriers with a jackhammer.
Traffic had begun to worsen as the demolition plowed ahead, with heavy delays being reported on Boston Post Road, Merritt Parkway and areas on I-95 leading to the construction site.
Chunks of the bridge running over I-95 fell to the ground around 8:45 a.m. as crews began knocking down the compromised structure. Piles of debris covered the highway below, hiding it from view.
At 9:10 a.m, the claw of an excavator pummeled through and tore away parts of the bridge, trying to fracture it.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
By 9:15 a.m., crews had completely severed the bridge from the surrounding roadway.
Morgan said he did not want to speculate how long removing both sides of the bridge would take.
Large, yellow excavators began taking bites out of the overpass shortly after 8 a.m., using shears to cut and remove the bridge's steel beams, Morgan said.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
The work comes after hydraulic jackhammers broke apart the bridge's concrete barriers, called parapets, on Friday, allowing the shears, which are "basically scissors," to slice the steel, Morgan said.
Traffic was beginning to back up around 7:30 a.m. Saturday on the stretch of Boston Post Road adjacent to the I-95 project site in Norwalk, the live feed shows. The state Department of Transportation also reported delays for drivers approaching the highway closure between exits 14 and 16.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation has installed a camera that is providing a live feed showing the progress of the Fairfield Avenue bridge demolition. As of 7 a.m. Saturday, the bridge remained standing with just its sides removed as crews began gathering at the site to resume the demolition.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
“There is significant interest in this ongoing emergency project, and this live video feed will help in our mission of keeping the public informed of the latest conditions on the highway,” Gov, Ned Lamont said in a statement announcing the live feed. “We encourage everyone to view the video feed safely from home and do not attempt to travel to Norwalk to visit the scene up close. Let the crews do their jobs so the highway can get reopened as quickly as possible.”
Crews began taking down the bridge early Friday morning. They first removed the fencing on both sides and then began using heavy equipment with a jackhammering device that has chipped away pieces of the bridge. The debris has been piling up on I-95, which will be repaved before the highway reopens, officials said.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Officials have been hopeful the highway will be fully reopened by Monday morning's rush hour. However, they said weather could be a factor in completing the work in time. Rain is in the forecast for Sunday, but officials have not said how that may affect their timeline.
“It’s going to be an inconvenience that we’re going to have to deal with,” Mayor Harry Rilling said Friday afternoon during a news conference near the accident site.
The repair will be funded by federal dollars, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said.
“We’re going to be demanding money to cover all of the costs, probably in the tens of millions of dollars, at least $20 million,” Blumenthal said. “We have every assurance that the Department of Transportation will provide this emergency relief.”