The AP-7 has partially reopened this Tuesday near Castellet i la Gornal, in l'Alt Penedès, after the removal of the two trucks that caught fire in the collision registered on Monday afternoon. The accident caused no injuries, but it forced the closure of the highway in both directions and caused several explosions.
The main disruption now remains in traffic flow. While the incident had no victims, the highway accumulated up to five kilometers of traffic jams in both directions and has not yet fully returned to normal in the northbound direction.
Trànsit reopened all lanes southbound and one lane northbound
The Servei Català de Trànsit has reported that all lanes are now open in the southbound direction and one lane in the northbound direction. The forecast is that the AP-7 will be operational again northbound during the morning, once the pending work on the road surface is completed.
During the first hours after the crash, the Mossos d'Esquadra closed the road in both directions to facilitate the intervention of emergency services. Trànsit maintains the recommendation to divert traffic via the C-32 or the N-340 while the cleaning tasks are ongoing.
Sprays from one of the vehicles fueled the fire and caused explosions
The Bombers de la Generalitat deployed fifteen units to extinguish the fire, which affected both vehicles and the roadside of the highway. Afterwards, several cranes removed the trucks to allow for the partial reopening of the road.
Ramon Lamiel, director of the Servei Català de Trànsit, explained the origin of the fire's spread.
"One of the trucks was carrying sprays, which ignited due to friction. These flames are what spread to both the trucks and the surrounding roadside and caused several explosions" - Ramon Lamiel, director of the Servei Català de Trànsit
One of the vehicles was transporting sprays and the other, tiles. After extinguishing the fire, emergency teams continued with the cleaning of the road surface to remove debris from the material and clear the affected section.
In addition to the traffic closure, the fire generated a strong citizen and operational response. The 112 telephone line received more than ninety calls about the fire declared next to the highway.
Protecció Civil has deactivated the special emergency plan Transcat for dangerous goods transport accidents.