Atlanta highway fire Interstate 85

Screengrab via Jono Moore/Instagram

Locals share video of massive Atlanta highway fire that’ll snarl traffic for months or years

The videos from people driving by is incredible.

 

Josh Katzowitz

Tech

Posted on Mar 31, 2017   Updated on May 24, 2021, 7:00 pm CDT

In a scary scene that fortunately led to no deaths or injuries, a major Atlanta interstate was engulfed in flames on Thursday night, causing a highway bridge to collapse. Video of the entire scene is gnarly.

The moment part of I-85 collapsed

JUST IN: Incredible video from NewChopper 2 of the moment the I-85 bridge collapsed. http://2wsb.tv/InterstateCollapse

Posted by WSB-TV on Thursday, March 30, 2017

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the bridge on Interstate 85, near Georgia 400 in midtown Atlanta, collapsed about 7pm ET on Thursday, and considering I-85 is a major artery, the terrible Atlanta traffic is about to get even worse for the foreseeable future.

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said Thursday night that there was no evidence of terrorism, but Atlanta fire spokesman Sgt. Cortez Stafford said it was unclear what had started the fire because it was too unsafe for inspectors to investigate.

“The entire bridge is compromised,” Stafford said. “Right now, it’s still dangerous to go under there.”

Here’s more footage of the fiery scene.

Here’s what the blaze looked like from drivers’ point of view.

And then of course, there were the Gen. William Sherman jokes that inevitably popped up on Twitter.

Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said PVC plastic materials underneath the bridge might have started the blaze, and on Friday, it was announced that both sides of the interstate for a total of 10 lanes are now close. It’ll lead to even more traffic headaches and heartbreaks for Atlanta and throughout the southeast U.S. where an estimated 250,000 drivers use that stretch of highway every day.

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*First Published: Mar 31, 2017, 9:14 am CDT