Down power lines close I-85 for hours in north SC

Authorities say a wreck around 1:30 p.m. Thursday knocked down the lines near mile marker 80 about 10 miles north of Spartanburg near the Cherokee County line.

Transportation officials worried a long shutdown could back traffic up along the main route from Atlanta to Charlotte, N.C. all the way into neighboring Georgia and North Carolina, but the highway was reopened quicker than expected.

South Carolina DOT figures show around 54,000 vehicles travel through that section of I-85 on an average weekday.