Three Semis, Two Crashes, and One Very Long Morning on I-5

Yesterday morning, the northbound I-5 in Lewis County turned into a complete standstill with multiple crashes.

Get our free mobile app

A three-semi collision at milepost 60 shut down all lanes, and if that wasn't enough, a separate crash near milepost 63 was already causing problems further up the road at the same time.

The Scene on I-5 Yesterday Morning was a Dangerous Mess

First, three semi-trucks colliding on an interstate is not a fender bender. It is a massive, complicated, dangerous mess involving thousands of pounds of debris, fluid spills, and a busy roadway that needs to be made safe before anyone can move through it.

All northbound lanes were completely shut down at milepost 60, with the only relief coming from drivers slowly trickling through using the on and off ramps at Exit 60.

WSDOT was clear from the start that this was going to be an involved cleanup.

The WSDOT Crew That Made It Happen

WSDOT gave a well-deserved shoutout to the crews on scene, and they earned every word of it. Twenty bags of absorbent material, a sweeper truck, and a lot of busy hands worked through the morning to get that highway cleared and safe.

These are the people who show up when everything goes wrong and don't leave until it's right.

By 11:31 AM, WSDOT confirmed all lanes at both mileposts 60 and 63 were fully reopened.

From Shutdown to Cleared in About Three Hours

Three semis. Two crash scenes. Twenty bags of absorbent. Three hours. Not bad for a Monday morning in Lewis County, but it could have been much worse.

Somebody, buy those crews a coffee.