Human waste shuts down Southwest Freeway

Hours after the crash that turned rush hour into a nightmare, all lanes are reopened.

HOUSTON — A truck carrying raw sewage overturned on the Southwest Freeway Friday afternoon making a mess of rush hour traffic.

All southbound lanes of the Southwest Freeway at Harwin Drive were closed, causing a traffic backup for miles.

According to TxDOT, the lanes were shut down due to a heavy truck/HAZMAT accident. Officials with TxDOT said the truck was carrying “processed human waste.”

WCA, the truck’s company, released a statement saying the truck was carrying “non-hazardous wastewater sludge” from a local water treatment facility.

“There were no injuries to the driver or any other person. No other vehicles were involved,” WCA said in a statement. “Haz-mat promptly responded and cleaned up the discharge from the truck. We regret this incident occurred and any traffic convenience it caused.”