Mount Baker Highway closed 3 hours by crash involving gravel truck
The Mount Baker Highway was closed for more than three hours Thursday evening by a Whatcom County crash involving a gravel truck and two other cars, but fortunately the Washington State Patrol reports there were no serious injuries.
One person was transported from the scene by ambulance with non-life-threatening injuries that “sounded minor,” Trooper Jacob Kennett told The Bellingham Herald Monday, Dec. 17.
“Anytime nobody is seriously injured and a truck is involved, I’m always happy that is the case,” Kennett told The Herald.
The crash, which occurred near Truck Road (milepost 15) was first reported at 3:46 p.m. Thursday, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.
The gravel truck, which was towing a trailer, was headed eastbound on State Route 542 when the trailer swung out and crossed the center line, Kennett said. The trailer hit two westbound cars on the highway, but Kennett said the impacts were more on the sides of the cars, rather than head-on.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, Kennett said.
Though no serious injuries occurred, the highway was closed in both directions until 6:58 p.m., according to WSDOT reports.
The reason for the lengthy closure was because the axles on the trailer broke in the collision, requiring the trailer to be loaded onto a lowboy trailer to be hauled away, Kennett said.
Kennett tweeted that a detour was set up around the scene while crews worked to clear the highway.
