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UPDATE: Lengthy closure on westbound I-70 was caused after tractor-trailer lost its brakes while descending from tunnel, police say

Pipes, fuel spilled across the roadway in Summit County near Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnels Monday

As of about 10 a.m., the overturned tractor-trailer had been pulled back up on its wheels but much cleanup remained to be done.
Summit Fire & EMS/Courtesy photo

A collision between two semitractor-trailers that closed a section of Interstate 70 for several hours Monday is believed to have been caused by one of the tractors losing its brakes, according to the Colorado State Patrol.

The driver of the second truck suffered minor injuries in the crash, which occurred a little after 7 a.m. on the highway’s westbound lane of travel at the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnels, Colorado State Patrol Sergeant Troy Kessler said. Those westbound lanes of travel were closed minutes after the crash and did not reopen until about 2:30 p.m.

One tractor-trailer was in the right lane when another tractor-trailer approached it from the rear, tried to pass it, but ended up rear ending it, causing the truck to roll and spill the steel it was carrying on the roadway, Kessler said.



The tractor-trailer that struck the other tractor-trailer continued a bit further before losing control and hitting an embankment off the right side of the road, according to Kessler. This tractor-trailer also spilled its load of metal pipes, some of which hit a black 2021 Toyota Tacoma, he said.

According to social media posts from Summit Fire & EMS, Colorado State Patrol’s Hazardous-Material Unit was called for cleanup of spilled fuel. Presley Fowler, a spokesperson for the Colorado Department of Transportation, said the crash caused significant travel delays as westbound traffic had to be detoured over Loveland Pass until the road was cleared.



An investigation of the crash is ongoing and will include an inspection of the tractor-trailer which is believed to have lost its brakes, Kessler said.


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