Hwy 99 reopens after truck hits overpass in Richmond, B.C.

The southbound lanes of Highway 99 in Richmond, B.C., have reopened hours after a truck collided with an overpass on Wednesday.

DriveBC said the highway reopened just after 5:30 a.m. PT.

The road was closed for more than 12 hours after the collision on Wednesday afternoon. 

The truck's trailer struck the Cambie Road overpass, causing the cargo to fall back onto a pickup truck, crushing the pickup's front end and windshield. No injuries were reported as a result of the collision.

It's not clear what the truck was transporting. Substantial damage on the 4.5 metre-high concrete overpass was visible at the scene.

The Cambie Road overpass is still closed westbound.

Richmond RCMP Cpl. Ian Henderson said the highway was closed because engineers needed "to take a good solid look at the overpass and make sure it's safe."

He said the incident caused a lot of congestion on nearby routes, including Knight Street and Highway 91.

"We were fortunate that no one was hurt in the incident, although there appear to be reports, after the fact, that a worker in the area may have been hurt during the cleanup operation."

B.C. Emergency Health Services confirmed one person was taken to hospital, but no further details were available.