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Crash shut down I-55 North near Litchfield, Illinois

Tractor-trailer carried hazardous material but no spill, officials say
A truck overturned on I-55 near Litchfield Saturday, causing the highway to shut down.
A truck overturned on I-55 near Litchfield Saturday, causing the highway to shut down.(Montgomery County EMA)
Published: May. 18, 2024 at 3:13 PM CDT
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LITCHFIELD, Ill. (First Alert 4) - A section of Interstate 55 North near the Litchfield exit in Montgomery County, Illinois was shut down due to a commercial motor vehicle crash. The truck was carrying hazardous materials, but local emergency management officials say there was no spill or breach of the containers.

The Illinois State Police said all lanes of I-55 reopened at 6:05 p.m.

Montgomery County, Illinois, Emergency Management Director Kevin Schott told First Alert 4 there is no danger to the public from hazardous materials. The highway will be closed until at least 6 p.m., and possibly longer, as crews work to remove cargo from the truck and get the crashed tractor-trailer uprighted.

Officials say traffic in the northbound lanes of the interstate was backed up several miles. Illinois State Police are on the scene and traffic is being rerouted to Old Route 66 to the Illinois 108 exit where the traffic is re-entering the interstate on the northbound lanes.

Schott said the commercial truck pulling a double trailer overturned at 8:27 Saturday, closing the northbound lanes of the interstate. The truck was carrying paint, non-hazardous items, and cylinders of an undisclosed hazardous material, which were not breached in the crash, Schott said.