YOUR AD HERE »

Truck crash at Vail Pass closed I-70 for hours

Emergency crews Wednesday spent several hours cleaning up an accident
Vail Fire Department | Special to the Daily |

Highway info

Call: 970-479-2226

Web: http://www.cotrip.org

Twitter: @ColoradoDOT

EAGLE COUNTY — A tractor-trailer truck jackknifed Wednesday afternoon across the width of westbound Interstate 70, about 5 miles west of the Vail Pass summit, closing the road in that direction for several hours.

Remarkably, no one was hurt, despite at least two vehicles smashed into the truck.

Vail Fire Chief Mark Novak said the westbound lanes of the highway were closed from the summit of Vail Pass to the west. The accident, which took place on snowpacked and icy roads, spilled some diesel fuel onto the roadway but was cleaned up by emergency crews.



While the truck blocked the entire westbound highway, Novak said the major delay was because of damage to the cargo trailer. The cargo the truck was carrying had to be unloaded and loaded onto other trucks, and that takes quite a bit of time.

The road reopened by 10 p.m.



The afternoon snow resulted in several other accidents on Vail Pass on Wednesday, tying up emergency crews from the Colorado State Patrol, the Vail Fire Department and other public agencies and private companies.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Glenwood Springs and Garfield County make the Post Independent’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.