Fiery tanker crash collapses bridge, shutting down I-20 for miles in Aiken County

GRANITEVILLE, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - A fuel truck crashed under a bridge early Saturday and erupted into flames on Interstate 20 in Aiken County, bringing down the Old Vaucluse Road over and closing the interstate for miles.

Amazingly, injuries were only minor.

The bridge was found to be a total loss.

A demolition team arrived on the scene shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday. They will be working around the clock to get the entire structure down, according to SCDOT.

Local asphalt plants are on standby because the asphalt is potentially damaged, SCDOT says.

Their main goal is to reopen the interstate and restore traffic between Augusta and Columbia, which they hope to accomplish in the early part of next week.

Firefighters said the truck carrying 8,500 gallons of gasoline was traveling east when the crash happened around 4 a.m., sending huge flames into the sky.

The Old Vaucluse Road over was already compromised after the crash, authorities said, but the fire was too much for it to handle, and it collapsed onto the interstate.

I-20 had to be shut down in both directions between Bettis Academy Road and Edgefield Highway.

Eastbound traffic is being detoured at Exit 6 to Interstate 520 westbound, where they will continue to U.S. 1, Exit 17. They will take a left on U.S. 1 to S.C. 118. Then they will go north on S.C. 19 until they reach the Exit 18 entrance ramp to eastbound I-20.

The westbound detour will be the exact reverse of that.

PHOTO GALLERY: AIKEN COUNTY BRIDGE COLLAPSE

Aiken County Sheriff Marty Sawyer warned drivers that they will be going from 70 mph down to 40 mph when they enter the detour, so they need to be mindful of first responders and local residents who may be on the side of the road. And the South Carolina Highway Patrol said it will be keeping an eye on the detour traffic, as well.

Allow extra time if need to drive the route, authorities said.

‘’Plan ahead, pack your patience and make a little extra time if you are traveling between Augusta and Columbia,” said Justin Powell with the South Carolina Department of Transportation.

SCDOT says that section of I-20 will be closed until early next week, and it will take months for the bridge to reopen. They also say they have activated an emergency contract to inspect and move the bridge out of the way.

“Right now, we’re going to be working around the clock. Now that we’re working around the clock, be prepared for delays and other challenges that we go through once we get the bridge cleared out of the Interstate. And when we get the Interstate reopened, we will then turn our attention to rebuilding the bridge over the Interstate of Old Vaucluse Road,” said Powell.

By 9 a.m., Saturday traffic was already heavy in Graniteville, where I-20 vehicles were being detoured.

The full sequence of events in the accident remains under investigation, and authorities said they weren’t ready to discuss those details.

Two people were transported to a hospital for treatment of their injuries. The status of their injuries wasn’t known, but there were fortunately no deaths, authorities emphasized.

Charles Kneece, GVW Fire Department chief, said 35 personnel with nine fire departments battled the flames.

The whole episode is reminiscent of what happened just over a month ago at I-20 and Columbia Highway in Aiken County. A tanker carrying a highly flammable liquid crashed under a bridge, and although no fire erupted, the chemical spill shut down I-20 for hours.

The GVW, Sage Mill, Center, Langley, Eureka, Trenton, Merriwether and Belvedere fire departments, as well as the South Carolina Highway Patrol, Aiken County Sheriff’s Office, Aiken County EMA, Aiken County EMS and Aiken County dispatch all assisted in this incident.

“We used roughly about 10,000 gallons of water to extinguish the fire,” said Kneece.

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