Northbound 1-65 in Northwest Indiana reopens after closure

RENSSELAER, Ind. (AP) - Northbound lanes of Interstate 65 in snowbound Northwest Indiana reopened Friday afternoon after being closed for about nine hours because of crashes and jackknifed semitrailers, Indiana State Police said.

All northbound lanes were closed Friday about 4:30 a.m. near Rensselaer, about 65 miles (104 kilometers) southeast of Chicago after a semitrailer lost two steel coils and ran off the road, causing an 8-mile (12.9-kilometer) mile backup. Sgt. Glen Fifield said.

They reopened about 1:30 p.m.

After tow trucks removed the semitrailers, plow trucks began salting the roads.

Fifield urged motorists to still drive carefully and at a reasonable rate of speed.

'œThe roadway looks like it's relatively dry, but that's slush,'ť Fifield said. 'œIt's thick, compacted slush ice. That looks dry, but it's actually not dry. '¦ It's about a half-inch thick, so it's going to take some time for the salt to get through."