Traffic backed up for miles behind a badly damaged tractor-trailer that caught fire along the New Jersey Turnpike Tuesday morning causing hours of delays that stretched into the afternoon.
Crews could be seen spraying water onto the wreckage in the southbound lanes approaching the Delaware Memorial Bridge in Carneys Point Township around 11:30 a.m.
The wreck was first reported just before 9 a.m. near milepost 3.2 when the big rig struck two New Jersey Turnpike Authority vehicles and a concrete barrier before jackknifing and becoming engulfed in flames, New Jersey State Police said.
By late morning the backup was up to 5 miles as all lanes were blocked, NJ 511 said. In the early afternoon the backup was down to 2-1/2 miles with traffic slowly getting by on the shoulder.
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Interstate 295 could be used as an alternate route, but expect delays as traffic is diverted that direction.
NJ 511 reported injuries in the crash. State police said no one was seriously hurt.
