Midlands interstate partially reopens after vehicle fire and hazardous material spill

One lane of Interstate 77 remains closed after a vehicle fire and hazardous material spill closed the northern lanes in Columbia Saturday morning.

At least one person was injured, the South Carolina Highway Patrol reported.

The vehicle caught fire about 5 a.m. a mile north of mile marker 19, according to the South Carolina Department of Transportation. That’s the exit for Farrow Road in northeast Columbia.

Details are limited, but as of 8:30 a.m., crews had extinguished the fire and were working on cleaning up the spill, the DOT said. Only the right lane of I-77 near exit 19 was closed as of 9:30 a.m.

The DOT did not identified the material that spilled.

The State has requested more details.

This story was originally published May 7, 2022 at 9:56 AM.

David Travis Bland

The State

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David Travis Bland is The State’s editorial editor. In his prior position as a reporter, he was named the 2020 South Carolina Journalist of the Year by the SC Press Association. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2010. Support my work with a digital subscription