POTTSVILLE, Pa. — Drivers going north on Interstate 81 near the pile-up tell us they were forced off at the Tower City Exit.
Many of the vehicles going through Pottsville were big rigs, and it jammed up the area for most of the day.
There were tight turns and stop-and-go traffic.
This is what downtown Pottsville looked like pretty much all day after that massive pileup on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County.
Leslie Miller lives in Mount Carmel but works in Camp Hill. Work let out early because of the wreck. Miller was diverted off the interstate and was stuck for two hours.
"They got us off at Tower City, and we just went and sit in traffic with everyone and all the truckers," said Miller.
The detour was about five miles, taking drivers through Pottsville and onto Route 61.
Southbound lanes reopened by mid-afternoon.
For sedans and SUVs maneuvering through the city isn't bad, but for big rigs, it's a different story.
"Well, it's tough. You're always on the clutch a lot, so your leg gets tired after a while," said Eric Morris, truck driver.
Workers at businesses who had a front-row seat to all of the congestion tell us they've never seen anything like this before.
Nick Funk works at Wheel on West Market Street. It took him 20 minutes to get to work, he lives half a mile away.
"Just about every vehicle that drove by today was a tractor-trailer. It slowed it down; it was congested. Everyone was having a hard time getting to work. It was a little slow, but there were bigger problems at hand," said Funk.
Interstate 81 North is closed from Exit 107 to Exit 119. Emergency officials say it will likely stay this way until Tuesday morning.
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