Update 4:40 p.m.: Another public safety alert was issued urging residents to use an alternative route as the highway continues to remain closed.
Update at Friday, January 16 at 11:50 a.m.: A public safety alert was issued to area residents noting the major accident. The collision is still blocking traffic across all lanes.
A major crash is all but halting traffic on one of San Antonio’s busiest highways as it approaches the city center. An overturned 18-wheeler hauling a load of bees has the ramp closed as drivers stuck behind wait for the scene to be cleared – an effort which the San Antonio Fire Department says will take an “extended period of time.”
Just before 9:30 a.m. Friday morning, January 16, a hauler truck flipped onto its side on the ramp connecting I-35 South toward I-10 West. The driver of the tractor trailer pulling a load of bees was transported to a local hospital with minor injuries, per SAFD, and the Texas Department of Transportation has deemed the wreck as being high severity.
While no reports of a hazardous material spill have been reported, liquid can be seen flowing down the side of the high-traffic connector from the truck and trailer which remain on their side in the latest images from the TxDOT website. An SAFD spokesperson confirmed with MySA that a small diesel spill occurred, triggering a hazmat team response.
This isn’t the first time a truck hauling bees has flipped on that same ramp linking I-35 to I-10 West. According to reports from KSAT back in 2021, a nearly identical situation occurred on the same Fine Silver Curve connector ramp.
Fire trucks and other emergency vehicles are on site, limiting the number of lanes where the I-10/U.S. 87 ramps converge from the south and east and link up with I-10 heading away from downtown. As a result, maps showing traffic are plastered with red lines at the intersection on the Northwest edge of downtown.
It’s unclear how long it’ll be before first responders and investigators are able to clear the scene, allowing traffic to flow freely again. But wait times are likely going to be quite long. In the meantime, traffic monitoring site SigAlert suggests exiting early on I-35 at San Pedro or Main avenues, before Fine Silver Curve, to avoid getting stuck behind the overturned tractor trailer and first responders.
“The remediation of this accident with take an extended period of time and cause significant traffic delays through the day,” an SAFD spokesperson told MySA. With this being a prime connection point for folks heading from downtown to the Northside, folks clocking out this afternoon before heading home should remain aware and check the status of this crash before planning a route.