It will likely be ‘months’ before I-95 is repaired
A day after a tanker truck carrying petroleum caught fire beneath a Northeast Philly overpass and caused a segment of I-95 to fall, there still are no reported injuries or fatalities. That’s the good news. The downer: Even with Transportation Secretary Buttigieg pledging federal resources after Gov. Shapiro signs a disaster declaration today, it could take “months” to repair the highway, the governor said.
Trying to commute that way? SEPTA is running extra trains, the PPA made station parking lots free, and city and state officials are directing traffic on side roads — but there’s bound to be traffic snarls. “We ask employers to be as flexible as they can with their workforces,” said SEPTA GM Leslie Richards. Here’s a summary of everything we know about the I-95 collapse.
Philly Pride local shopping guide
Want to avoid the “rainbow capitalism” of some corporate Pride Month promotions? Shop local. BP freelancer Josh Kruger asked for readers’ faves, and came up with a selection that ranges from expert bakers to lizard mongers. Check out 10 LGBTQ-owned Philly businesses with character and charm.
RECAP: What else happened?
$ = paywalled
• There’s a boil water advisory in effect for parts of West Philly (see map), with about 18k people affected, because a pumping station briefly lost pressure so bacteria could’ve been pulled into pipes. [Phila Gov x 2]
• The PPD officers fired or suspended in 2019 for racist and violent social media posts can try suing the city, a federal appeals court ruled, overturning a lower court on technicalities. “Posts like the officers’ have the capacity to confirm the community’s worst fears about bias in policing,” the judge noted. [BP 2019 x 2/AP]
• Penn Medicine is opening a new crisis response center at HUP Cedar that will consolidate emergency, inpatient, and outpatient mental health care for around 4,000 patients a year. [Daily Pennsylvanian]
• Germantown residents held weeks of community paint days to create Philadelphia’s first Juneteenth mural, which will debut at a dedication ceremony during the neighborhood’s June 17 festival. [PhillyVoice]
• A man interviewed by TV news after the I-95 collapse provided the internet with a perfect example of Northeast Philly hoagiemouth. [Billy Penn]
• Turns out data shows the pitch clock at Citizens Bank Park is indeed a little faster than others, as Aaron Nola and other Phillies claimed. [Sports Illustrated/Athletic$]
• Stellar QB and actor, too? Jalen Hurts stars as the “prince” in a Cinderella-esque short film/promo for producer Teyana Taylor’s Jordan Brand ball gown. [AL.com/YouTube]
MAYOR WATCH
Nothing on the public schedule for Mayor Kenney today, though he did have a busy weekend helping kick off the Free Library’s “Summer of Wonder” reading program and speaking at the 37th annual Madam CJ Walker Awards luncheon. He ended up missing Sunday’s Odunde Festival to deal with the I-95 collapse.
ON THE CALENDAR
🥃 National Bourbon Day brings a chance to snag a unique glass made locally from a Maker’s Mark bottle at a “Dip & Sip” social hour at The Twisted Tail in Headhouse Square. (5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, June 14)
📖 Get to know James Joyce’s “Ulysses” like never before at the Rosenbach’s annual Bloomsday Festival, where the novel is read aloud from start to finish, culminating in a beer garden happy hour. (11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, June 16)
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