Lorton, Va. — The driver of a tractor trailer was killed early Monday in Lorton after his truck slammed into a work truck and caught on fire.
The crash happened at 2:13 a.m. about three quarters of a mile north of mile post 163 on Interstate 95. Virginia Department of Transportation crews were working in the area when the tractor trailer crashed into a VDOT truck, rupturing the tractor trailer’s fuel tank and sparking a blaze.
The unidentified driver died on the scene, and his body was taken to the medical examiner’s office in Manassas where officials are working to notify next of kin, said Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller.
One VDOT worker suffered minor injuries when he jumped out of the way of the oncoming tractor trailer.
The subsequent crash investigation closed all lanes of I-95 north, as debris littered the roadway following the crash. Traffic was diverted onto U.S. 1 at mile post 161 so drivers could get around the crash scene.
After 7 a.m., the northbound lanes of the highway had reopened but crews were having difficulty removing the charred tractor trailer from the roadway as small fires continued to flare up, said Geller.
Traffic on I-95 north was snarled in much of Prince William County and on the High Occupancy Vehicle lanes. Restrictions on the HOV lanes, which require vehicles to have at least three occupants inside in order to use the lanes, were lifted for the Monday morning rush hour.
