All lanes of Interstate 40 near Knoxville in Johnson County were cleared Wednesday afternoon, almost 11 hours after a fatal accident west of Arkansas 333.
The Arkansas Department of Transportation announced at about 3:43 p.m. that the outside westbound lane of the interstate had been cleared.
1:41 p.m.: I-40 lanes reopen in Johnson County; 2 killed in fiery wreck, authorities say
Eastbound and westbound lanes of Interstate 40 near Knoxville in Johnson County have been cleared, according to incident reports from the Arkansas Department of Transportation at about 1:30 p.m.
The outside westbound lane of Interstate 40 near London remained blocked, according to the agency.
12:39 P.M.: Crashes leave I-40 eastbound, westbound blocked in Johnson County
A portion of eastbound and westbound Interstate 40 were closed early Wednesday afternoon near the scene of a wreck that left two dead, according to state police and Transportation Department officials.
All lanes of traffic in the eastbound and westbound lanes of I-40 near the Knoxville exit were blocked, state Department of Transportation spokesman Holly Butler wrote in an email.
Near London, crews at the scene of a crash that killed two people cleared the inside lane of westbound I-40.
12:11 P.M.: I-40 westbound blocked in fiery commercial vehicle wreck that left 2 dead
A total of five commercial vehicles were involved Wednesday morning in a fiery wreck on Interstate 40 that left two people dead and continued to leave the route blocked shortly before noon, authorities said.
Two of the vehicles caught fire as a result of the crash, which happened west of Arkansas 333, near London, according to Arkansas State police spokesman Bill Sadler. The two carried drain cleaner and bleach, Sadler said, though he couldn’t immediately specify which chemicals were held in either vehicle.
The blaze was being extinguished by a private company and local fire departments, according to state police.
The two people who died were in one of the vehicles that caught fire, according to authorities. Their identities weren’t immediately released Wednesday morning, pending notification of next of kin.
One person received minor injuries in the crash and was treated at the scene, Sadler said.
The westbound lanes of Interstate 40 remained blocked near the scene of the crash just before noon, according to an Arkansas Department of Transportation map.
The Pottsville Police Department recommended in a social media post that drivers take U.S. 64 as a detour.
EARLIER:
A fiery wreck involving two commercial vehicles on Interstate 40 in Johnson County has left two people dead and continues to block the highway’s westbound lanes Wednesday morning, authorities said.
The crash was reported west of Arkansas 333, near Knoxville shortly before 5 a.m., according to an Arkansas Department of Transportation incident report. State police spokesman Bill Sadler said the crash involved two commercial vehicles and killed two people.
Crews continued to work at the scene of the wreck, he said.
The crash was preceded by another, which was reported just after 2:30 a.m. roughly two miles to the west, according to the Transportation Department. Sadler said the scene of the earlier wreck had been cleared.
In a Facebook post, the Pottsville Police Department recommended drivers take U.S. 64 as a detour.