(CNN) — A busy stretch of Interstate 95 in southwestern Connecticut reopened to traffic this weekend, just a few days after a gasoline tanker fire damaged an overpass and forced the highway to close in both directions.
Traffic was back up running in both directions Monday morning “at full capacity” in Norwalk – some 40 miles northeast of New York City – CNN affiliate News 12 reported.
“It is truly amazing that in less than 80 hours from that fiery crash Thursday that shut down traffic in both directions, the highway again is fully open,” Gov. Ned Lamont – who is expected to hold a news conference Monday morning – said Sunday in a news release, praising state agencies involved in the cleanup, demolition and rebuilding.
“I am impressed by these efforts and thankful for the dedication, skill, and labor of everyone who has been involved,” he said.
Northbound lanes of I-95 in Norwalk had been expected to reopen by 8 p.m. Saturday, according to Lamont’s office, while the southbound lanes had been anticipated to open by Sunday at 10 a.m.
While the highway has reopened, work continues to replace the Fairfield Avenue Bridge, which was demolished after sustaining “significant damage” in Thursday’s crash, Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said in the news release.
The governor declared a state of emergency in response to the accident, saying Thursday the interstate would be closed “at least through the weekend.” Motorists were encouraged to avoid the area – a tall order, given Norwalk, home to about 90,000 people, is about 30 miles southwest of New Haven, Connecticut, and in the New York metro area.
The bridge was demolished by 12:30 p.m. Saturday, according to a news release that day from the governor’s office. Crews then cleaned up debris and began repairing the highway before reopening northbound lanes.
The southbound lanes remained closed until Sunday because the damage was so severe “that those lanes need to be milled and repaved,” the release said.
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