UPDATE: Interstate 24 and Moore Road have reopened after overnight repairs, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation's Smartway traffic website.
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Rush hour traffic came to a halt Tuesday on Interstate 24 heading east at Exit 184 after a truck carrying an oversized load apparently hit the Moore Road bridge that crosses over the interstate.
The incident was reported around 2:40 p.m., according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation's Smartway traffic website.
The interstate is expected to be closed at Moore Road at least until sometime Wednesday morning. Moore Road is also shut down in both directions at the bridge.
Traffic on I-24 East was being detoured off at Exit 184 and back onto I-24 East.
"TDOT is working closely with the City of Chattanooga's traffic signal systems engineer to coordinate traffic signals in the area," reads a news release.
Roads around the area are seeing slow traffic as a result of the shutdown. For the latest traffic conditions, visit smartway.tn.gov.
In the meantime, TDOT crews are working to inspect the overpass and clear the debris from the roadway.
A truck hauling an oversized piece of construction equipment struck the concrete outer beam of the bridge, causing "considerable damage to the beam," a TDOT news release states.
Traffic is shown backed up on Interstate 24 East at the ridge cut on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, after a truck carrying an oversized load apparently hit the Moore Road bridge that crosses over the interstate, leaving debris on the roadway.The equipment was loaded onto the trailer in such a way that the boom was over 16.5-feet high, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, which is conducting the investigation. When it hit the overpass, debris from the bridge hit the vehicle - a 2014 Toyota Camry - traveling behind a dump truck.
The truck driver has been cited for being over height, a THP spokesperson said. No injuries were reported.
A TDOT bridge inspection team conducted "a thorough inspection to assess the extent of the damage. As a result, TDOT engineers have determined that the beam needs to be removed," the release says. "Crews with Dement Construction Co. are mobilizing equipment to the site to perform this work."
No injuries have been reported, according to Chattanooga police, and the driver of the truck stopped. The Tennessee Highway Patrol is handling the investigation.
It is the second time in less than a year that oversized trucks have hit overpasses in that area.
Last year on April 1, TDOT shut down the Interstate 75 South ramp at the I-24 split after a piece of the side of the ramp collapsed, tumbling onto the I-75/I-24 ramp headed to Chattanooga. One person was injured when their vehicle plowed into the fallen debris. Officials later surmised that a truck carrying an illegally oversized load hit the bridge, slicing through steel cables that supported the concrete railing.
Traffic is shown backed up on Interstate 24 East at the ridge cut on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, after a truck carrying an oversized load apparently hit the Moore Road bridge that crosses over the interstate, leaving debris on the roadway.
A portion of I-24 East is closed due to a truck hitting an overpass on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, in Chattanooga. / Screen capture courtesy of TDOT traffic cameras
A portion of I-24 East is closed due to a truck hitting an overpass on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, in Chattanooga. / Screen capture courtesy of TDOT traffic cameras
A portion of I-24 East is closed due to a truck hitting an overpass on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, in Chattanooga. / Photo courtesy of TDOT