FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ga. — State and local agencies were urging drivers to avoid I-85 in northeast Georgia following an accident that caused a "hazardous material spill."
The Georgia Department of Public Safety (DPS) issued a statement on social media, Sunday, around 7:30 p.m. warning drivers of the incident, which initially shut down both north and south lanes near mile marker 160 in Franklin County. Around 10:30 p.m. the agency reported that southbound lanes had reopened.
The northbound lanes, which had been closed for more than 10 hours, reopened at around 8 a.m. on Monday.
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office described this as the area of the interstate near Hwy. 51 and Old Federal Road.
"Our officers, firefighters, and [Department of Transportation] DOT personnel have their hands full with a dangerous situation" the sheriff's office continued.
A spokesperson for the DPS later told 11Alive that the chemical in question is known as methyl acrylate (1919).
The National Library of Medicine describes the stabilized form of the chemical as a "colorless volatile liquid with an acrid odor. Its vapors are also listed as an eye and respiratory system irritant. It can also be "highly toxic by inhalation, ingestion, and skin absorption." The substance is also said to be highly flammable.
Data on the chemical, also from the National Library of Medicine, suggests it is "used in the manufacture of leather finish resins, textile and paper coatings, plastic films, vitamin B1 and as a chemical intermediate."
The sheriff's office added that their phone lines were "tied up" and said that the blockage could last several hours - as long as 10 to 12 hours according to the DPS. As of midnight, Franklin County dispatch was reporting that at least some northbound lanes were still closed - even though the lane closures weren't showing up on Georgia DOT maps at the time.
Authorities haven't yet said whether there were injuries involved.
