All lanes of I-25 have reopened after deadly train derailment in southern Colorado
The deadly train derailment near Pueblo had shut down both directions of I-25 for a few days but both directions have since reopened. The southbound lanes reopened on Wednesday afternoon and the northbound lanes reopened on Thursday afternoon.
The NTSB said a broken track east of the bridge over the interstate caused the derailment over the weekend, sending 30 rail cars filled with coal onto the interstate.
Lafollette Henderson, 60, of Compton, California, died when the semi he was driving was under the bridge that collapsed when a BNSF Railway coal train derailed on Sunday as it was passing over I-25 a few miles north of Pueblo.
I-25 had been closed in both directions since the derailment and detours were in place for a few days. The Colorado Department of Transportation held true to its goal of working to re-open northbound I-25 no later than Thursday evening.
Drivers traveling through that area should expect a rough driving surface because the damaged roadway will be milled and there will be slightly reduced speed limits temporarily through the stretch for safety.
Repairs to the bridge will take longer partly because there is confusion over which entity owns the bridge. BNSF Railway said the state has ownership. CDOT said they have conflicting records on the 65-year-old bridge.