Multi-vehicle crashes about 6 miles west of Park City have traffic on westbound I-90 backed up and drivers should detour if they plan on continuing west past the crash area, according to the Montana Highway Patrol.
By 2:35 p.m. Sunday afternoon, MHP announced on social media that it expected I-90 near the crash to be closed “well into the evening.” The primary crash involves five semis and two pickup trucks, MHP said in the post.
Drivers intending to continue west past the crash area should take the Park City exit and travel down Old Highway 10 to Columbus, according to MHP.Initially the crash area was reported to be from roughly mile marker 420 to mile marker 423 on westbound I-90.
MHP received reports of the crashes at 9:31 a.m.
The primary crash involved a pickup truck hauling a camper that jackknifed for unknown reasons, said MHP Trooper Jake Parker.
A second pickup truck hauling a camper then crashed into the jackknifed pickup. Neither driver was injured, according to Parker.
Shortly after the initial crash, multiple semis crashed into each other as they tried to slow on an icy bridge deck ahead of the pickup trucks. In one instance, a semi collided with the cab of another semi that was “sandwiched in the middle of everything,” Parker said. The driver of the semi that was struck had to be extricated from his vehicle. He was then taken to a hospital for “serious injuries,” but speaking at about 4:30 p.m., Parker said that the last he had heard was the injured man was in “stable” condition. All five semis were disabled by the crash and two of them caught fire. Some of the guardrail along the bridge deck was damaged by the crashes. East of the crash two other semis crashed, including one that went into the median. Parker said those were non-injury, minor crashes.
Several first responder agencies went out to the scene of the crashes, including the Stillwater County Sheriff’s Office, the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office, the Laurel Fire Department, Laurel EMS, the Columbus Fire Department, Columbus EMS, the Columbus Police Department, the Park City Fire Department and Park City EMS.
Parker said that Hanser’s Automotive was working on removing the disabled semis.
“Roads are very, very slick. Only travel for necessary travel. Slow down for changing road conditions, shut off your cruise control,” Parker advised. “And with it being Super Bowl Sunday, have a designated driver.”
A Gazette photographer documenting the crashes shortly before 1 p.m. reported that part of the blockage appeared to be near the overpass at Youngs Point Road.
It appeared that two semis had crashed and were partially burned. In one instance the entire cab of a semi had been destroyed by fire. By noon Sunday MDT’s online road conditions map described the interstate from Billings to Big Timber as covered in snow and ice with areas of falling snow, reduced visibility and drifting snow. The Sunday crash near Park City comes a day after 20-vehicle pileup on eastbound I-90 which was also near Park City. Those crashes happened as responders were dealing with a semi stuck in the median early Saturday afternoon when another semi traveling east failed to slow down and yield to road signage. That semi nearly struck a Stillwater County deputy before jackknifing and causing the pileup of vehicles behind it. Injuries were reported by MHP to be mostly minor.
Locations around Park City reported snowfall totals from Friday through early Saturday afternoon between 8 and 9.5 inches. Further west near Reed Point, the 24-hour snowfall totals by Saturday morning had reached 13 inches.
Around Billings snowfall totals by Saturday morning were ranging between 5 and 8 inches, with one location reporting 10.4 inches by 5 p.m. Sunday morning snow depth at the Billings Logan International Airport measured a foot.
A winter weather advisory from the National Weather Service in Billings went into effect Sunday morning and is scheduled to remain active until 11 a.m. Tuesday.
The advisory states that people should plan on slippery road conditions and that hazardous road conditions could impact both morning and evening commutes. Additionally, dangerously cold wind chills as low as minus 35 could cause frostbite to exposed skin within 10 minutes, according to the weather service.Throughout the duration of the advisory light snow with accumulations of 1 to 3 inches could be seen. The advisory is generally for parts of north-central Wyoming and south-central Montana.
Counties affected by the advisory include: northern Stillwater, northern Big Horn, southern Big Horn, northern Carbon and southwestern Yellowstone.
Additional locations affected by the advisory include the Bighorn Canyon, Sheridan Foothills, Columbus, Absarokee, Park City, Rapelje, Hardin, Crow Agency, Busby, Lodge Grass, Pryor, Wyola, Joliet, Fromberg, Billings, Laurel, Huntley, Broadview, Sheridan, Dayton, Ranchester and Big Horn.
Another winter weather advisory for parts of south-central Montana is also expected to extend into Tuesday morning.
That winter weather advisory lists similar road impacts, slightly higher snow accumulations of 2 to 4 inches and wind chills as low as minus 40.
Areas affected by this winter weather advisory include northern Park County, the Red Lodge foothills, the Paradise Valley, the Livingston area, the Beartooth Foothills, southeastern Carbon County, northern Sweet Grass County and the Melville Foothills.
Communities affected by the advisory include Clyde Park, Wilsall, Red Lodge, Roberts, Roscoe, Emigrant, Livingston, Springdale, Fishtail, McLeod, Nye, Bridger, Belfry, Warren, Big Timber and Melville.