UPDATE (March 6, 2023, at 6 p.m.): Cabell County 911 says firefighters returned to Interstate 64 where a tractor-trailer rollover happened on Monday morning.
Dispatchers believe the on-ramp at Merritts Creek is open again in addition to all eastbound lanes of I-64. They say emergency crews “cleared the whole call” and that “the interstate appears to be back open.”
UPDATE (March 6, 2023, at 4 p.m.): The Interstate 64 East on-ramp remains closed as of 4 p.m. on Monday, according to Rob Pennington, District 2 Engineer for the West Virginia Department of Transportation.
Crews reopened the eastbound lanes near Merritts Creek a couple of hours ago, Pennington says. The on-ramp at Merritts Creek is still closed and will remain shut down throughout Monday evening, according to Pennington.
Cleanup crews say they are pumping product out of the trailer’s tanks and will eventually remove the truck.
(UPDATE: March 6, 2023, at 1:55 p.m.): At this time, the Interstate 64 East on-ramp remains closed at Merrits Creek after a tractor-trailer rollover in Barboursville, West Virginia.
Chief Andrew Frazier with the Barboursville Volunteer Fire Department says the trailer was carrying about eight large containers of motor oil. Crews believe one container was not damaged.
Chief Frazier says crews did air quality checks in and around the tractor-trailer.
The truck was the only vehicle involved, and the driver was minorly injured, according to Chief Frazier.
“He’s very lucky, and we’re lucky that the whole time the accident happened, you know, at 5:50 in the morning, there’s not as many people on the interstate,” Chief Frazier says. “So fortunate it was just the one vehicle involved.”
Chief Frazier says emergency responders closed the ramp to keep everyone safe during the cleanup.
He says crews are working quickly because traffic officials understand the on-ramp closure is “a major inconvenience, and it clogs everything up” on U.S. Rte. 60 and other nearby roadways.
BARBOURSVILLE, WV (WOWK) — A 13 News crew is on the scene where a tractor-trailer rollover happened on Interstate 64 East in Barboursville, West Virginia.
Cabell County 911 says the rollover happened Monday just after 6 a.m. on the eastbound entrance ramp at Merritts Creek. The eastbound lanes and on-ramp were closed, according to dispatchers.
Dispatchers tell 13 News the driver was traveling on the interstate and veered off the road into the entrance ramp area. The driver was minorly injured, dispatchers say.
According to dispatchers, the on-ramp remains closed while crews clean up diesel that spilled from the truck. Emergency responders say the ramp will be for quite some time.
“You’re looking at several more hours easily to offload all the oil and clean up the diesel because the diesel is going to have to be cleaned up from the side of the interstate as well,” says Chief Andrew Frazier with the Barboursville Volunteer Fire Department.
Crews say the diesel spill poses no threat to the public at this time.
