UPDATE: I-79 South reopened early after acid spill

Update: 9/20/2024, 7:23 a.m.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — Monongalia County Emergency Management says the portion of Interstate 79 closed due to the acid spill earlier this week has since reopened.

Estimates yesterday suggested crews may have had to work into Saturday to repair the damage to the road, but 9-1-1 officials said that work was completed in the early morning hours on Friday.

The acid spilled after a tractor-trailer lost control on Wednesday and overturned.

The West Virginia Department of Transportation said the acid “severely damaged” the southbound lanes of the highway to the point they needed to be repaved.

Update: 9/19/2024, 2:07 p.m.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — Interstate 79 in Monongalia County will be closed for at least another 24 hours while crews dig up and repave a section of the road that was damaged in an acid spill Wednesday.

A truck rolled over near the Goshen Road exit between Morgantown and Fairmont around 1 p.m. on Sept. 18, spilling a “large amount of acid” on the road. On Sept. 19, the West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) said that the southbound lanes, which had already been closed for more than 24 hours, were “severely damaged” and will have to be repaved.

The release from the WVDOT said that crews will have to dig up and repave about 500 feet of the road. The project is expected to take 24-48 hours, according to the release.

Traffic is being detoured off of the Goshen Road exit and then back on the interstate “a short distance later.”

Update: 9/18/2024, 4:22 p.m.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — The Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office has issued a press release with details about a reported hazmat situation on Interstate 79 Wednesday afternoon.

According to the release, at around 1:10 p.m., deputies were alerted to a single-vehicle accident involving a Freightliner tractor-trailer near the 146 mile marker of I-79 South.

Deputies on the scene said that the tractor-trailer, based out of Indiana, appeared to have lost control and rolled over, spilling a “corrosive material” onto the interstate. The driver of the tractor-trailer refused medical treatment.

Deputies began diverting southbound traffic off of the interstate and onto Goshen Road, and are still doing so as of 4:26 p.m. The release said that both southbound and northbound lanes of I-79 will be closed periodically as cleanup efforts continue.

The Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Monongalia County Hazardous Incident Response Team, Triune Halleck Volunteer Fire Department, Clinton District Volunteer Fire Department, Monongalia County EMS, West Virginia Public Service Commission and the West Virginia Division of Highways Hazardous Materials Response Team.

Update: 9/18/2024, 2:51 p.m.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — Officials on the scene of a reported hazmat situation on Interstate 79 in Monongalia County have confirmed that a tanker truck rolled over and spilled a strong acid.

Officials told a 12 News reporter on the scene that the strong acid that spilled was a Belclene product. Pictures taken by the reporter show this acid leaking out of the truck and draining into the median.

The reporter noted that Mon EMS special operations crews were on the scene and were setting up tents, meaning that the southbound lanes of I-79 will likely be closed in the area for an extended period of time.

This incident is being investigated by the Mononghalia County Sheriff’s Office.

This is a developing story. Stick with 12 News for updates.

Original: 9/18/2024, 1:58 p.m.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WBOY) — The southbound lanes of Interstate 79 are shut down in Monongalia County while hazmat units are on the scene of a tanker truck rolled over.

According to the Monongalia County Emergency Management Agency , the accident happened near the Goshen Road exit at mile marker 145.5. A Facebook post from the agency said that the southbound lanes are expected to be closed for “an extended period of time,” and that drivers should avoid the area.

West Virginia 511 shows that traffic is slowing north of the I-79 and I-68 split.

According to the Monongalia County 911 log, emergency personnel from the Monongalia County Sheriff’s Office, West Virginia State Police, Clinton District Volunteer Fire Department and Triune Halleck Volunteer Fire Department as well as hazmat units are on scene.

Stick with 12 News for updates on this developing story.

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