A series of disabled cars on Interstate 95 north in Stafford County led to a temporary closure of the highway on Thursday, said Virginia State Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Coffey.
The Virginia Department of Transportation reported the crash about 5:43 p.m. The saving grace — the temporary closure was of the northbound lanes, which didn’t affect drivers commuting south and heading home from work.
I-95 NB STAFFORD: All I-95 northbound lanes are closed about 2 miles north of Exit 143/Route 610 in Stafford for a multi-vehicle crash. Around 2 miles of congestion leading to scene. #FXBGtraffic pic.twitter.com/kZboXVfAAO
— VDOT Fredericksburg (@VaDOTFRED) April 4, 2019
Drivers here, however, were lucky, as two more serious crashes led to longer delays on two other major roads in the region’s transportation network — The Capital Beltway and Interstate 66.
Fairfax County – Beltway crash
At 1:38 p.m. Thursday (April 5), a tractor-trailer traveling west on I-495 lost a tire, which struck a vehicle in the left lane of I-495. The tractor-trailer then ran off the left side of I-495, struck the cement Jersey wall and overturned. The impact of the crash with the wall caused the tractor to catch fire and the trailer to lose some of its load of insulation into the eastbound lanes of I-495. The debris in the eastbound lanes also caught fire.
The driver of the tractor-trailer was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment of minor injuries. He was charged with reckless driving for failing to maintain control of his vehicle. (I’m afraid I don’t have his information – name, age, or address)
The driver of the vehicle that was struck by the tire was not injured in the crash.
Fairfax County – I-66 chain reaction crash
At approximately 5:50 p.m., Virginia State Police received a call about a two-vehicle crash in the eastbound lanes of I-66 near Exit 60. As oncoming traffic swerved to avoid those vehicles and then one another, two chain-reaction crashes occurred. The first of the chain-reaction crash involved five vehicles. The second chain-reaction crash involved seven vehicles, with the last two catching fire.
There was only one minor injury and that driver was treated at the scene.
A total of seven drivers, among the two sets of crashes, was charged with following too closely.
Thursday’s incidents come about a week after a Woodbridge man was charged after his tractor-trailer crashed near the American Legion Bridge, crossing the Potomac River connecting Maryland with Virginia. The bridge is one of three in the region that cross the Potomac, and traffic was backed up for hours.
