Tractor-trailer crash in Portsmouth, N.H. backs up traffic for hours on I-95
A tractor-trailer overturned following a crash on Interstate 95 in Portsmouth on Friday afternoon, blocking several lanes of travel and backing up traffic for several hours, state police said.
At approximately 2 p.m., troopers were notified of a two-vehicle crash on Interstate 95 South, near mile marker 14.8, in Portsmouth, state police said.
When troopers arrived, they found a 2016 Honda Pilot disabled in the southbound lanes, adjacent to a 2012 Freightliner tractor with an enclosed 30-foot trailer that was lying overturned and perpendicular to the roadway, and blocking both a northbound and southbound lane.
A preliminary investigation found that the Honda Pilot, being driven by a 16-year-old driver from Amesbury, Massachusetts, and with juvenile passengers, entered I-95 South from the Exit 7 on-ramp, state police said. The driver then merged onto the highway into the path of the Freightliner, causing its driver, Luis Vasquez, 46, of Haverhill, Massachusetts “to take evasive actions,” state police said.
“This resulted in the Freightliner striking the center dividing guardrail causing the truck and trailer to overturn,” state police said.
No injuries were reported.
Investigators closed a portion of I-95 for approximately five hours while emergency personnel worked to clear the crash scene.
Portsmouth Police and Fire, the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, and National Wrecker Service assisted state police at the scene.
Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact Trooper First Class Harrison Walters at Harrision.E.Walters@dos.nh.gov.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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