UPDATED: I-75/24 Interchange Reopened to Traffic

A section of concrete on Interstate 75 South collapsed onto the roadway of the Interstate 24 West and I-75 interchange, Monday morning at about 11:30 a.m.

An official with the East Ridge Fire Department said a motorist crashed into the chunk of concrete and received minor injuries. No other injuries were reported. ERFD is not working the incident, simply monitoring the situation.

Southbound traffic just north of the split at I-75/I-24 was diverted as the roadway was closed so workers could clear debris. Motorists traveling north on I-75 at the split were also diverted. TDOT officials opened Southbound I-75 at about 6:30 p.m. on Monday evening. The Northbound lanes from I-75 to I-24 were reopened at 9:30 p.m.

TDOT officials told news sources that the bridge where the chunk of concrete fell had been inspected in July 2018. At that time there were no problems with the bridge, officials said.

TDOT officials said emergency repairs will begin soon on the collapsed section of the bridge. Those repairs are expected to be done within a month. The bridge will be replaced during the reconfiguration of the I-75/I-24 interchange later this year.

About Dick Cook

Dick Cook has lived in East Ridge since the Kennedy Administration when his parents bought a house on Marietta Street. Dick graduated from ERHS in 1976 before going on to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he studied Political Science. Dick worked for the Chattanooga Free-Press and the Chattanooga Times Free Press for 22 years. Free-Press Sports Editor Roy Exum plucked him out of production in 1989 and gave him a job as a sports reporter. Dick covered everything from prep sports to the whitewater events on the Ocoee River for the 1996 Olympics. When Chattanooga's two paper's merged, he became the Crime Reporter covering both the Chattanooga Police and Fire Departments. He was among reporters who were honored by the Associated Press for the TFP's coverage of the 2002 fog-shrouded crash on I-75 in Catoosa County, Dick and his wife, Cathy, live on Marlboro Avenue where they are seen frequently chasing around their three grandsons.