Three wrecks lock up I-20 East Accidents involve 5 18-wheelers, 2 cars, stall traffic for hours
Published 12:05 pm Monday, March 12, 2012
Wrecks shut down Interstate 20 twice Sunday night and this morning, as 18-wheelers collided near Bovina during a heavy thunderstorm and, hours later, a passenger car spun out near the weigh station and involved multiple tractor-trailers, authorities said.
No serious injuries were reported.
Also, about 7:45 this morning, a third interstate wreck occurred, involving one vehicle but no injuries.
The first wreck occurred about 10:30 p.m. in the eastbound lanes about a mile east of the Bovina exit, said Sheriff Martin Pace.
A truck hauling medical supplies drifted off the road and slide to a stop, said Warren County Deputy Jeff Harrell.
Traveling behind, the driver of a second 18-wheeler, carrying vegetables, saw the first truck on its side and swerved but hit the rear of the first trailer, Harrell said.
Jesus Fresquez, 12021 Parchment, El Paso, Texas, the driver of the first truck, was taken to River Region Medical Center where he was treated and released, a hospital spokesman said.
The second driver, Tommy Henson, 5015 Old Russellville Pike, Russellville, Tenn., refused treatment at the scene, said Pace.
Officers with the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol shut down the interstate to clear the trucks, which were lying side by side on the highway. About two hours later, traffic was still at a standstill for about a mile.
The second wreck, also in the eastbound lanes, occurred at 1:35 a.m. near the weigh station, about four miles west of Bovina.
A woman driving what was identified only as a passenger car lost control of her car, and it spun around in the middle of the road, said Pace. The driver of an 18-wheeler behind her swerved, but the car spun into and underneath the trailer, hitting its rear axle, said the sheriff. The car and tractor-trailer, carrying electronic supplies, came to rest in a median ditch on the left side of the highway, he said.
The driver of a second tractor-trailer traveling behind the first saw the wreck, pulled over onto the right side of the interstate and ran across the road to check the victims for injuries, said Pace. That truck was carrying nuts and bolts, he said.
A third 18-wheeler driver, hauling vents and duct work, came up behind and plowed into the back of the second, said Pace.
The woman and the third truck driver, whose names were not available, were taken to River Region, said the sheriff. Their conditions were not known this morning.
“The highway was shut down for both wrecks,” said Pace, “but they were able to open up part of a lane of traffic and route vehicles around it fairly quickly. When tow trucks arrived they did have to shut it down again for a time while they moved everything out of the way.”
The two wrecks were unrelated, he said.
Cpl. Odis Easterling of the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol said the interstate was cleared and open at 7 a.m.
In the third wreck, Terrye Lacy, driving a Chrysler 300 with a Warren County tag, lost control of the car about a mile west of the East Clay Street exit. The car traveled across the median and came to a stop next to the westbound guard rail. Lacy was not injured.
About an inch of rain fell in Vicksburg Sunday, most of it during the storm which hit around 9:30 p.m. Light rain continued overnight, making roadways slick.
The National Weather Service is forecasting about a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms this afternoon and evening, with a high around 80. Patchy fog is expected overnight, with a low around 60. Tuesday will be partly sunny, with a high near 79.