A crash left an 18-wheeler dangling from a Houston freeway overpass on Thursday, spilling hazardous material and shutting down a major stretch of Interstate 10 for hours. The big rig came to rest hanging off the elevated lanes of the Katy Freeway at Highway 99, the Grand Parkway, near the Katy Mills Mall on the western edge of the metro area.
The scene first drew a response at around 10:44 in the morning, and it stretched on for hours afterward as crews worked the wreck. By early afternoon the freeway remained closed, with the truck still perched on the edge of the overpass and the recovery operation only beginning to take shape at the busy interchange.
Adding to the danger, authorities reported a hazardous material spill at the site. The combination of the dangling truck and the spilled material turned the crash into a complicated scene for emergency crews, who had to secure the area even as they worked to clear the rig from its precarious position above the roadway.
One person was taken to a hospital and treated for injuries, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office. The cab of the 18-wheeler had come to rest down on the ground below the overpass, separated from the trailer that remained hanging above on the freeway, a sign of the force of the crash.
The wreck brought traffic to a standstill. All of the eastbound lanes of Interstate 10 were blocked off, and drivers backed up for about a mile behind the closure. Motorists heading inbound were forced to divert onto Highway 99, peeling off to the north or south, while the feeder road choked with barely moving traffic.
Recovering the truck promised to be a slow process. Three tow trucks were attached to the rig, with crews preparing to use the heavy equipment to pull it back onto the freeway before hauling it away. Officials warned the closure would last a while and urged commuters passing Highway 99 on I-10 to find another route into town.