Two dead and multiple injured in Wyoming tunnel collision as police warn of ‘explosion threat’

Police earlier warned of a possible ‘explosion threat’ following the crash at the tunnel at Green River in the southwest of the state

Smoke billows from the tunnel at Green River, Wyoming (AP)

Two people are dead and multiple injured after a multiple-vehicle collision in an Interstate 80 tunnel in Wyoming.

The Sweetwater County Sheriff's Office earlier warned of a possible “explosion threat” following the crash on Friday at the tunnel at Green River in southwestern Wyoming.

Dramatic pictures from the scene showed smoke billowing from the tunnel, which was evacuated.

At least five others are seriously injured, according to authorities.

The black smoke and exploding tires made getting inside difficult for rescuers, Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper Nicholas Warren said.

Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Jason Mower told the Cowboy State Daily that a tractor-trailer loaded with transformers was involved in the crash, and the transformers exploded.

Mower told the newspaper that explosions could be heard coming from inside the tunnel.

He also warned that the structure of the tunnel had been compromised.

The crash in the twin tunnels’ westbound tube late Friday morning closed the highway in both directions. There was still no estimate by late afternoon when it would reopen. Highway traffic was being rerouted through Green River.

A statement from nearby Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County earlier urged people not to visit unless they had an emergency or family in the “mass casualty” wreck.

By late afternoon, the hospital said it was “back to normal operations.”