I-90 crash holds up traffic for 4 hours

By Tristan Scott - 09/05/2008

MISSOULA — Traffic was backed up eight miles Thursday after a tractor trailer and a pickup truck collided on Interstate 90 near Beavertail Hill State Park, east of Missoula, according to an official with the Montana Highway Patrol.

The wreck occurred at 11 a.m. near mile marker 130 and closed both lanes of the interstate until 3 p.m. Debris from the crash caused delays and detours for hundreds of motorists, according to Trooper Chad Dever.

Three people received minor injuries and were taken to St. Patrick Hospital, where they were treated and released.

"Somehow we escaped someone getting hurt really badly," Dever said. "It's miraculous that nobody was killed." Dever said a semi truck hauling a large trailer and a smaller pup trailer was driving westbound alongside a pickup truck. One vehicle struck the other, and together they crashed into the median. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

Diesel fuel came spilling out of the truck, complicating cleanup efforts, Dever said.

"Everything that could have gone wrong did, except that nobody was killed," Dever said.