Here are 7 shocking photos from the collapse of I-95 and the ensuing cleanup.
Early Sunday morning, June 11, 2023, part of Interstate 95 collapsed due to a tanker fire underneath the northbound lanes in Philadelphia.
All lanes were shut down on I-95 near Cottman Avenue and State Road.
According to 6ABC the fire broke out after 6 am. Reports say the collapse happened around 6:22 am with one of the last cars driving over it less than a minute before the unthinkable happened.
Reports are that the tanker was carrying a petroleum-based product when the fire began. In the process of the fire, the northbound side of 95 collapsed on top of the burning truck due to the high heat. The southbound side also became compromised as a result of the blaze. All lanes on I-95 near Cottman Avenue and State Road remain closed. The southbound lanes will need to be demolished as well and the cleanup and rebuild could take months.
The NTSB and the Federal Highway Administration are in Philadelphia to assess the damage and lend support.
It was reported on Monday (6/12) that sadly the truck driver, Nathaniel Moody, lost his life in the accident.
DRIVER IDENTIFIED: Family members say the driver of the tanker truck that caught fire Sunday morning was Nathaniel Moody—“a husband, father, and experienced driver for 10+ years.” They tell me he was transporting fuel for a company in Pennsauken, NJ @FOX29philly pic.twitter.com/p7NjY4IGo8
— Kelly Rule (@KellyRuleTV) June 12, 2023
I-95 connects central Philadelphia with Mercer County in New Jersey and Bucks and Delaware Counties in Pennsylvania. An average of 160,000 commuters travel on this portion of I-95 every day.
Not only do people use I-95 daily to get to work, and it is most Philadelphian’s access to the shore. PennDOT has suggested a detour for Philadelphians to use. State officials are even asking for employers to be sensitive to the travel times of their employees given the Interstate collapse.