Both sides of Interstate 95 in Norwalk have fully reopened on Sunday, days after a fiery crash closed the area.
Crews have been working to demolish the Fairfield Avenue Bridge after it was damaged during a crash and fire on Thursday morning.
"Having the highway completely closed in both directions allows additional equipment to be on site," said Josh Morgan, spokesperson for Connecticut Department of Transportation. "You know, multiple excavators that had the grapplers, the shears, really heavy-duty equipment."
The work included removing concrete, steel and debris from the road, sweeping the road, milling, paving and restriping the pavement markings.
“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,” Governor Lamont said in part in a statement.
Some people from the area came out to watch demolition this weekend. We spoke to them about their experience the last couple of days.
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"Norwalk was a mess. A lot of big trucks on side streets you've never seen before," said Matt Potts, of Norwalk. "I work in Stamford, and it took me two hours to get from Exit 6 to Exit 13," said Juan Trujillo, of Norwalk.
State police said a Chevrolet Camaro was entering I-95 south from Route 7 when it hit the front of a fuel truck that was in the right lane. That collision caused the fuel truck to veer into the center lane and hit a tractor-trailer truck in the lane.
After the collision, state police said the fuel truck burst into flames under the Fairfield Avenue overpass and the other two vehicles caught on fire. The heat from the fire damaged the overpass and the bridge.
No injuries were reported.
The northbound side of the highway reopened on Saturday evening. The state initially estimated it would be Monday morning before the entire highway would reopen. Lamont has since said that the entire highway will reopen on Sunday morning.
Engineers have also been working to develop preliminary replacement plans for the Fairfield Avenue Bridge. The designs are expected to be completed within the next two weeks with the replacement expected to take about a year.
"Unfortunately, there is such a backlog on steel and materials. We're going to be, you know, up to a year before that bridge can get replaced," said Morgan.
Governor Ned Lamont is expected to give an update on Monday about the next steps for the bridge.
