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NEW LONDON – All traffic on I-95 over the Gold Star Memorial Bridge was shut down as emergency personnel responded to a fuel truck rollover and active fire late Friday morning.
In a live police feed, emergency personnel said that Groton officials closed down on-ramps and the state Department of Transportation has shut down the I-95 bridge to respond to the incident.
According to Connecticut State Police, injuries have been reported, but their extent is unknown at this time. Reports by police radio suggest that some workers may be trapped in a gas plant below the bridge in Groton.
“Apparently this has spread into a gas plant underneath the bridge down in Groton,” one officer said. “They’re saying that they have parties trapped in there as well.”
By noon, an officer speaking over the emergency radio said that gasoline was no longer actively burning, but suggested that the bridge was still on fire.
“There is nothing left of the gasoline,” the officer said. “The only thing burning now is the actual bridge.”
Earlier photos show large clouds of black smoke rising from the bridge, but recent live camera feeds suggest that the fire has been contained.
Shortly before 1 p.m. northbound traffic resumed across the Thames River.
State police told CT Examiner that all updates on the accident and shutdown will be posted to their Twitter account.