A tractor-trailer fire on Monday closed the southbound lanes of Interstate 87 for several hours in Wake County.
The crash was reported around 7:30 a.m. near Exit 9 (Smithfield Road) near Zebulon. The State Highway Patrol (SHP) said a tractor-trailer rear-ended a tanker truck, and the tractor-trailer went up in flames.
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According to the State Highway Patrol, the driver of the tractor-trailer failed to reduce speed, which led to the crash.
The road reopened by noon, but some congestion remained in the area.
Sky 5 flew over the interstate following the crash, where you could see the charred tractor-trailer on the side of the road.
The front of the truck was engulfed in flames, and one driver caught in the traffic told WRAL News she saw the smoke from miles away.
"The smoke was so thick you couldn't even see in front of you at all," described Louise Smith, who said she is still trying to get the smell of smoke out of her car. "It was filling the cars up and it was a greasy kind of a thick smoke in the air ... there was no visibility on either side of the road or in front of you."
The driver of the the tractor-trailer that caught fire was taken to the hospital for minor injuries, according to the SHP. No one was seriously injured.