Three of four bridges between the U.S. and Canada in western New York have reopened after being closed Wednesday because of a fatal car crash on the American side of the Rainbow Bridge.
The crash late Wednesday morning at the border checkpoint prompted officials to close the Peace, Lewiston-Queenston, and Whirlpool Bridges and delay flights into and out of Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
Original concerns of the crash being a terrorist-related event have been dismissed. Law enforcement officials now say a man and his wife were driving a Bentley at a high rate of speed when it crashed, injuring one border guard. The couple has not been identified, but officials say they had been at a casino in Niagara Falls, New York.
Local, state, and federal law enforcement officials responded to the scene of the fiery accident, which sent up clouds of dense black smoke. Law enforcement in New York City and Washington, D.C. were on alert for part of the day.
By Wednesday night, the FBI announced it had concluded its investigation at the scene and turned the case over to the Niagara Falls Police Department as a traffic investigation.