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Diesel Spill Culprit of Severe Congestion on Interstate 80 Wednesday Evening

Utah Highway Patrol

A pickup truck crashed on westbound Interstate 80 late Wednesday afternoon, spilling fuel and causing hours of delays for people heading to the Salt Lake Valley.

 

Shortly after 4pm Wednesday, the Utah Highway Patrol responded to a report of a potential hazardous material spill near the quarry in Parleys Canyon.

 

A spokesperson for the patrol said a pickup truck was traveling westbound on Interstate 80 before changing lanes and hitting a semi truck carrying hazardous material. 

 

The driver of the semi pulled over and was able to confirm that none of the material was spilled, but the pickup that caused the incident continued down the canyon for approximately five miles before crashing and rolling about one mile from the mouth of the canyon.

 

Highway Patrol said the pickup truck then began leaking diesel fuel in the right-hand lanes and the fuel was running into drains along the side of the interstate. Hazmat crews were called to the scene in order to clean up the spill, closing several lanes of westbound traffic and causing serious delays until after 7pm.

 

Highway Patrol said there were no serious injuries related to the crash but the driver of the pickup truck is being investigated for possible impairment that contributed to the accident.

Sean Higgins covers all things Park City and is the Saturday Weekend Edition host at KPCW. Sean spent the first five years of his journalism career covering World Cup skiing for Ski Racing Media here in Utah and served as Senior Editor until January 2020. As Senior Editor, he managed the day-to-day news section of skiracing.com, as well as produced and hosted Ski Racing’s weekly podcast. During his tenure with Ski Racing Media, he was also a field reporter for NBC Sports, covering events in Europe.