DRAPER, Utah — A massive oil spill caused a huge headache for drivers headed North on I-15 in Draper Thursday morning as the freeway was shut down completely for nearly 12 hours while crews worked to clean up.
The drive from Provo to Sandy, which usually takes less than 30 minutes using I-15, took more than three hours due to the incident. Drivers were encouraged to delay their commute until the freeway could be partially reopened.
"They're looking right now at a partial closure after that midmorning opening so hopefully crews can make some good progress and clear that all up," explained Sgt. Cameron Roden with the Utah Highway Patrol.
Two lanes were opened just before noon, about 12 hours after the incident initially happened.
“I got on the freeway about 800 N., and didn’t realize it was all coming to a stop until right after Thanksgiving point," explained Karl Larose, a driver from Orem. "At that point, it becomes what? A mess! There is no driving etiquette in Utah at all, people cutting each other off, it was a mess!”
The crash happened around 11:15 p.m. Wednesday at 14600 South on I-15 Northbound.
WATCH: Utah Highway Patrol gives an update on the cleanup process and when the freeway will open
Utah Highway Patrol reported the incident involved at least six vehicles, including semi-trucks.
The major traffic event first started when an Amazon semi-truck jack-knifed on the freeway and a passenger vehicle merged over to avoid the crashed truck.
A pickup truck was travelling at a "significantly higher speed," UHP explained and hit the back of the passenger vehicle.
At that point, a semi-truck carrying two tankers full of crude oil was also traveling too fast for the conditions on the freeway and lost control, sliding into the back of the Amazon truck.
The semi-truck carrying the oil detached and rolled, which blocked the middle lanes and spilt about 1,500 gallons of crude oil on the freeway.
In addition, an SUV hit debris from the crashes and was also disabled, UHP stated.
Despite the messy crash, no injuries were reported, UHP said.
Traffic was diverted off of exit 288 and drivers used frontage roads northbound to get to Bangerter Highway but with the influx of drivers, even frontage roads were quickly blocked up.
Officials warned that drivers should have plenty of fuel in their car and other emergency items if it's absolutely essential to travel through the area. They asked for patience as many crews worked to clean up the mess.
UHP explained that there were dozens of other crashes overnight across the Wasatch Front due to weather conditions. In total, about 100 crashes were reported with 40-45 Thursday morning. Speed was a factor in a majority of the crashes, officials reported.
Drivers are urged to slow down on roads made slick due to ice and snow.
