Dallas

Flipped Fuel Tanker Closes All Lanes, Ramps of High Five in North Dallas

"It's a volatile situation": TxDOT warned

.S. Highway 75 and Interstate 635 have reopened after a tanker truck hauling a volatile resin rolled on its side while on the massive High Five overpass, prompting a hazardous materials cleanup that shut down the highly-trafficked highways for several hours Thursday.

As of 3 p.m., the only road that remains closed is the ramp from southbound U.S. 75 to eastbound Interstate 635, which is where the tanker struck a retaining wall and tipped on its side at about 4:30 a.m.

No other vehicles were involved in the crash and no one was hurt, a Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesperson said.

All lanes of Central Expressway and LBJ Freeway were closed early Thursday morning due to concern about the volatility of the resin that needed to be transferred to a new tanker before the toppled trailer could be uprighted.

Before offloading the resin, Dallas firefighters were seen spraying the tanker with water to keep it cool.

The closure continued for hours due to the volatility of the resin, which NBC 5 learned is a compound commonly used to create plastics.

An 18-wheeler rolled onto its side on a ramp over the High Five interchange in North Dallas before the Thursday morning rush.

A TEXpress spokeswoman released the following statement: "Traffic on I-635 is being impacted due to an incident on US 75. Crews are working to evacuate motorists on the general highway and TEXpress lanes at this time. The LBJ Express team is working with first responders to address this incident as quickly as possible. For any further information, contact the local Dallas Police Department."

At about 10:30 a.m., the eastbound lanes of LBJ Freeway were reopened to traffic and the westbound lanes were opened sometime before noon. Northbound and southbound U.S. Highway 75 remain closed with backups extending several miles.

Traffic is slowly expected to get back to normal Thursday afternoon. Since the ramp from southbound 75 to eastbound 635 remains closed, drivers using that stretch of road are encouraged to find alternate routes until the tanker is cleared.

Backups Extended for Miles; Drivers Frustrated

Some drivers stuck in the traffic posted their frustrations on social media.

"@NBCDFW could yall flyover and drop off some breakfast tacos for us? I'm starving," one viewer tweeted.

"Put it on park and jam out I guess, what else can we do?" another asked.

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