Collision on Interstate 95 leads to nightmare Friday afternoon commute

PORTSMOUTH - No one was injured in an Interstate 95 collision involving a tractor trailer and another vehicle, but the crash clogged Friday's rush hour traffic for some five hours.

The crash occurred southbound in the area of mile marker 14.8 around 2 p.m.

One of the involved vehicles was reported as a tractor-trailer that had overturned and was blocking several lanes of travel, police said. Responding Troopers located a 2016 Honda Pilot that was disabled in the southbound lanes adjacent to a 2012 Freightliner tractor with an enclosed 30-foot trailer that was lying overturned and perpendicular to the roadway so that it was blocking both a northbound and southbound lane.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the Honda Pilot, being operated by a 16-year-old from Amesbury, Mass., entered I-95 South from the Exit 7 on-ramp, police said in a Friday statement. This operator merged onto the highway into the path of the Freightliner, causing its operator, Luis Vasquez, 46, of Haverhill, Mass., to take evasive actions. Safety officials said this resulted in the Freightliner striking the center dividing guardrail causing the truck and trailer to overturn.

Neither driver, nor other juvenile passengers of the Honda Pilot sustained any injuries.

A portion of the interstate was closed for around five hours while emergency personnel worked to investigate and clear the incident scene.

Anyone with information about the crash is asked to contact Trooper First Class Harrison Walters at Harrison.E.Walters@dos.nh.gov.