Updated: I-75 reopened after a crash, chemical spill in Lexington causes lengthy shut down
A section of I-75 has reopened Monday morning after a lengthy shutdown caused by a tanker truck crash Sunday, according to the Lexington Traffic Management Center.
The crash happened around 6:30 p.m. in the southbound lanes of I-75 shortly after the 115 mile-marker, according to the traffic management center. Just after 7:30 a.m. the traffic management center reported the road had reopened.
Officials had drivers exiting the interstate at the Newtown Pike exit, heading to New Circle Road then North Broadway before re-entering the interstate.
Sgt. Thomas Johnston with the Lexington Police Department said an SUV rear-ended the tanker truck. The road was shut down for hours so crews could clean up a chemical spill.
The tanker truck was carrying lead oxide, according to Johnston. The road was expected to reopen around 8 a.m.
Lead dioxide is an irritant as well as a health and environmental hazard, according to the National Institutes of Health. Contact with the chemical may cause severe injury or burns. It also could accelerate a fire, according to the NIH.
The driver of the SUV had non-life-threatening injuries while the driver of the tanker truck was not injured.
This story was originally published May 15, 2023 at 7:07 AM.
