Norwalk — As an Interstate 95 overpass — badly damaged in a tanker fire on Thursday — continues to be demolished this weekend, southbound drivers are advised to seek alternate routes. The northbound lanes were reopened just before 8 p.m. Saturday.

Crews on Friday began demolishing the Fairfield Avenue bridge, which connects Connecticut Avenue to South Norwalk. The bridge was severely damaged when a three-vehicle crash ignited a petroleum tanker early Thursday on I-95 southbound.

The state Department of Transportation on Saturday installed a camera that is providing a live feed of the demolition.

I-95 is not expected to fully reopen until at least Monday morning between exits 14 and 16 in Norwalk.

Here is the latest on the I-95 closure, bridge demolition and traffic delays:

Northbound lanes reopen Saturday

The northbound lanes of I-95 reopened to traffic just before 8 p.m. Saturday after crews managed to remove debris ahead of scheduled, according to Gov. Ned Lamont.

The southbound lanes, meanwhile, will remain closed through Sunday because the pavement on that side of the highway sustained more damage than the northbound lanes and still need to be repaved, officials said.

"Crews are making great progress in Norwalk and I am encouraged that we'll have one side of I-95 open later tonight," Lamont said in a statement. "Completely removing that bridge in less than 36 hours is an impressive feat and is credit to the hard work and dedication of the contractors and Connecticut Department of Transportation crews, who are pushing to get the entire highway fully reopened in both directions by Monday morning."

Frontier Communications working to repair damaged lines

Telecommunications lines owned by Frontier Communications were damaged in Thursday's crash, resulting in service disruptions for some Norwalk customers, according to the Dallas-based company.

In an emailed statement on Saturday, Frontier officials said they expect to have service restored for the majority of affected customers by the end of the weekend and hope to complete the restoration by the end of the week.

"We are working diligently to get our customers connected despite the challenges caused by the fuel truck," company officials wrote in the statement.

Crash unfolded after sports car attempted to merge

The fiery three-vehicle crash that closed Interstate 95 on Thursday unfolded after the 22-year-old driver of a Chevrolet Camaro struck the front end of an oil tanker while attempting to change lanes, according to a police accident report.

The sports car was traveling southbound in the four-lane highway's far right lane around 5:30 a.m. when it merged into the right center lane occupied by the tanker, leading to the initial collision, Connecticut State Police officials wrote in a two-page crash summary.

The tanker, which was hauling 8,500 gallons of oil, then veered into the left center lane, struck a tractor-trailer and burst into flames before coming to a stop directly under the Fairfield Avenue overpass.

Bridge vanishes and clean-up begins

Both sides of the bridge were torn down shortly after noon, leaving large amounts of debris piled below. Following demolition, "clean-up mode" began, DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said. Payloaders snatched the rubble and piled it off to the side of the highway, where other vehicles scooped and lifted it out of sight of the live feed.

"They made really great progress once that equipment was here," Morgan said. "But as you can see on the video feed ... there's still a lot of work for us to do but we're still optimistic that we'll meet that Monday morning deadline."

One side of bridge is removed as traffic worsens

By 10 a.m., crews had completely knocked down the side of the bridge that used to sit above I-95's northbound lanes. On the other side, an excavator punctured concrete barriers with a jackhammer.

Traffic had begun to worsen as the demolition plowed ahead, with heavy delays being reported on Boston Post Road, Merritt Parkway and areas on I-95 leading to the construction site.

Norwalk bridge is coming down

Chunks of the bridge running over I-95 fell to the ground around 8:45 a.m. as crews began knocking down the compromised structure. Piles of debris covered the highway below, hiding it from view.

At 9:10 a.m, the claw of an excavator pummeled through and tore away parts of the bridge, trying to fracture it.

By 9:15 a.m., crews had completely severed the bridge from the surrounding roadway.

Morgan said he did not want to speculate how long removing both sides of the bridge would take.

Giant shears cut down steel

Large, yellow excavators began taking bites out of the overpass shortly after 8 a.m., using shears to cut and remove the bridge's steel beams, Morgan said.

The work comes after hydraulic jackhammers broke apart the bridge's concrete barriers, called parapets, on Friday, allowing the shears, which are "basically scissors," to slice the steel, Morgan said.

Weekend traffic starts to back up

Traffic was beginning to back up around 7:30 a.m. Saturday on the stretch of Boston Post Road adjacent to the I-95 project site in Norwalk, the live feed shows. The state Department of Transportation also reported delays for drivers approaching the highway closure between exits 14 and 16.

Live feed shows bridge demolition

The Connecticut Department of Transportation has installed a camera that is providing a live feed showing the progress of the Fairfield Avenue bridge demolition. As of 7 a.m. Saturday, the bridge remained standing with just its sides removed as crews began gathering at the site to resume the demolition.

"There is significant interest in this ongoing emergency project, and this live video feed will help in our mission of keeping the public informed of the latest conditions on the highway," Gov, Ned Lamont said in a statement announcing the live feed. "We encourage everyone to view the video feed safely from home and do not attempt to travel to Norwalk to visit the scene up close. Let the crews do their jobs so the highway can get reopened as quickly as possible."

Bridge coming down in pieces

Crews began taking down the bridge early Friday morning. They first removed the fencing on both sides and then began using heavy equipment with a jackhammering device that has chipped away pieces of the bridge. The debris has been piling up on I-95, which will be repaved before the highway reopens, officials said.

Officials have been hopeful the highway will be fully reopened by Monday morning's rush hour. However, they said weather could be a factor in completing the work in time. Rain is in the forecast for Sunday, but officials have not said how that may affect their timeline.

Replacement will take one year

Officials estimate it will take a year to replace the Fairfield Avenue bridge.

"It's going to be an inconvenience that we're going to have to deal with," Mayor Harry Rilling said Friday afternoon during a news conference near the accident site.

The repair will be funded by federal dollars, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said.

"We're going to be demanding money to cover all of the costs, probably in the tens of millions of dollars, at least $20 million," Blumenthal said. "We have every assurance that the Department of Transportation will provide this emergency relief."