MOUNT CRAWFORD, VA (Rocktown Now) — UPDATE (9/25/25 3:30pm): Two bridges over Interstate 81 that were struck on Tuesday by an oversized tractor trailer in Rockingham County reopened to traffic Thursday.

The Virginia Department of Transportation has completed detailed inspections of the bridges on Route 704 (Cecil Wampler Road) and Route 867 (North River Road) and determined that they are safe for vehicular travel.

Both bridges sustained damage to the underside of their concrete girders. Inspections confirm that even with the damage, the girders’ structural capacity continues to exceed safety requirements for the traveling public. VDOT will schedule repairs in the coming weeks. The work will require overnight single-lane closures on southbound I-81.

All work is weather permitting.

ORIGINAL:

The right lane of southbound I-81 remains closed near mile markers 239 and 241 in Rockingham County for bridge inspections/repairs after a truck carrying an oversized load struck the overpasses.

Route 704 (Cecil Wampler Rd) and Route 867 (N River Rd) are closed in the area of the bridges over the interstate due to damage from the truck strikes.

The truck continued travelling southbound and was located later at a rest area in Augusta County.

The driver of the truck, 62-year-old D. Duggins, of Stuarts Draft, Va., has been charged with misdemeanor property damage, violating maximum vehicle height, reckless driving, two misdemeanor hit and run counts, and a permit violation. 

The crashes remain under investigation by Virginia State Police.

VDOT says the lane and bridges will be closed until at least Wednesday morning.