Here’s why traffic was backed up on U.S. 278 at the Hilton Head bridge on Friday morning

An accident blocked westbound lanes of U.S. 278 on the Hilton Head Island bridges for about 30 minutes on Friday morning, though traffic remained heavy even after the accident was cleared.

Lt. Col. Bill Neill of the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said no one was injured in the two-vehicle accident that occurred just before 10:30 a.m.

Traffic was backed up past Spanish Wells Road before the accident was cleared, according to the Beaufort County traffic camera system.

Both lanes on the bridge originally were blocked by the crash, according to the Sheriff’s Office Emergency Management Division.

The right lane was cleared about 15 minutes later, but the left lane remained closed longer as police officers and tow trucks cleared the scene.

Traffic was moving freely in the eastbound lanes the entire time.

This story was originally published January 19, 2018 at 10:34 AM with the headline "Here’s why traffic was backed up on U.S. 278 at the Hilton Head bridge on Friday morning."