2 semis crash into Columbia hours apart at same place
By Joanna Wilson
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SHERMAN COUNTY, Oregon (KPTV) — Interstate 84 westbound will be closed for several hours Monday morning at Biggs Junction while crews remove two semi-trucks and four trailers from the Columbia River after the semis crashed at the same spot – hours apart on Friday night, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation.
I-84 west will close at 7 a.m. at milepost 103. Crews will bring in special equipment to get the trucks out of the river.
ODOT said westbound traffic can use Old Highway 30/OR 206 that runs parallel to the interstate, getting back on I-84 at Celilo. Traffic may also use US 97 to cross the river at Biggs Junction and use State Route 14 in Washington, returning to I-84 via the US 197 bridge at The Dalles.
According to Oregon State Police, the first semi-truck pulling two trailers went off the the freeway just before 9 p.m. Friday.
OSP said the truck hit an abandoned Mercedes parked on the roadside, smashed through the guardrail and then crashed into the river.
The Sherman County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook that the driver was unhurt and swam to shore.
The second crash happened around 12:30 a.m. Saturday.
An ODOT vehicle with its emergency lights flashing and a tow truck had responded to the scene of the crash and were planning how to pull a semi-truck with two trailers out of the river.
That was when a second semi-truck hauling two fuel tankers hit the unoccupied ODOT vehicle, went off the roadway and crashed into the Columbia, right next to the first semi.
According to a follow up Facebook post by the Sherman County Sheriff’s Office, the fuel tanks were empty when the crash happened.
Oregon Emergency Response System, the first point of contact for responding to hazardous materials incidents in the state, was notified about the crash and will coordinate cleanup of the scene.
Meanwhile, OSP said the ODOT vehicle and the abandoned Mercedes were both towed that night, with the semi trucks left in the river until they could be removed.
ODOT announced Sunday the removal process would begin Monday, and the time involved would depend on the complexity of the operation, but they estimated I-84 Westbound would be closed for at least several hours.
OSP said their investigation of the crash determined the second driver likely fell asleep before hitting the ODOT vehicle. They did not give any further details about their investigation into the first crash.
No one was reported injured from any of the crashes.
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