I-81 crash kills truck driver, blocks highway for much of Thursday

9:30 p.m.

VDOT says all lanes of I-81 in Botetourt County are back open.

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6:41 p.m.

From Jenna Zibton, WSLS Weekend Anchor in the field

HAZMAT crews spent Thursday cleaning up a chemical called Thioglycol, commonly used in manufacturing. The liquid has a very strong odor, similar to the the rotten egg smell of natural gas.

The chemical was being hauled on a Yellow Freight Lines 18-wheeler with two trailers attached. The truck was driving from Charlotte to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Around 2 a.m. Thursday, the truck was headed northbound on Interstate 81. It ran off the road in Buchanan, near mile marker 167 and hit a guardrail.

"The cab and the first trailer overturned in the media, the second trailer wound up overturning in the southbound lane and it was struck by another tractor trailer" says Virginia State Police Sgt. Bob Carpentieri.

The truck driver, Wayne Richie Kratzer, 51, was trapped inside.

Buchanan Fire Chief Billy Joe Carter was one of the first emergency responders on the scene.

"He was pinned from his waist down. Very nice guy. He talked the whole way through, very cooperative. There were 11 of us at one time cutting and trying to extricate the patient out of the vehicle. He was in good spirits there at the end he was joking around."

It took three hours to get Kratzer out. He died on the way to Roanoke Memorial Hospital.

The Yellow Freight Lines truck was hauling general freight and more than a dozen barrels of the chemical Thioglycol.

"At least two were compromised during the wreck. Its a poison, a class 6 hazmat materials." said Sgt. Carpentieri.

"It didn't smell too good. It kind of ruined our gear. Turned it a green color the boots and pants" said Chief Carter.

Four firefighters were taken to the hospital, complaining of eye irritation and respiratory problems. They have been released and are expected to make a full recovery.

We talked to the Blue Ridge Poison Control Center. They said if you live in the area and have breathing problems, you may also notice irritation but it should go away. They advised staying indoors if you live close the crash site.

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4:40 p.m.

From Erin Barnett, WSLS reporter in the field

VDOT tells me if everything goes as planned, crews hope to completely re-open both sides of I-81 within 3-4 hours.

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3:20 p.m.

VDOT's 511Virginia.org shows the right southbound lane is now back open.

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3:09 p.m.

VDOT's 511Virginia.org shows the right northbound lane is back open .  Crews are working to re-open one southbound lane.

Detours are still in place.

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2:14 p.m.

VDOT's 511Virginia.org shows traffic delays increasing on both sides.

Northbound traffic is now backed up 8 miles.  Southbound traffic backed up 11 miles.

Detours still in place.

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1:05 p.m.

VDOT's 511Virginia.org shows the traffic delays on the northbound side are improving.  It's down to 6.5 miles.

Southbound traffic back-ups are still at 10 miles.

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10:59 a.m.

State Police Sgt. Robert Carpentieri, of State Police's Salem Division, says the driver of the double-tractor trailer that crash has died.

Sgt. Carpentieri tells us he was 51-year-old Wayne Richie Kratzer, of Mifflintown, Pennsylvania. 

HAZMAT team leaning up chemical spill.  I-81 detours: Northbound at Exit 162; Southbound at Buchanan exit.

Traffic is backed up 8 miles on northbound side, and 10 miles on southbound side.

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7:16 a.m.

HAZMAT crews are working on cleaning the scene on Interstate 81 in Botetourt county where all lanes are closed.

State Police say a tractor trailer carrying a poisonous material, called thioglycol, hit a guardrail and overturned.  Another tractor trailer then hit it. All north and southbound lanes are closed between mile marker 162 and 168. The driver was taken to Roanoke Memorial Hospital.

Traffic is being rerouted on Route 11 but there will be delays there as well as a tractor trailer is now off on its side on an embankment. One lane is closed and vehicles are alternating lanes to get by the 2-lane road.

WSLS has learned that Botetourt County made a reverse 911 call telling residents to go back into their homes.

Residents near the wreck can go back outside.

The driver was carrying between 16 and 22, 30-gallon barrels of the chemical.