Semi fires and lost loads keep IRT busy
Posted 1-18-08
On Thursday, Jan. 10, the morning commute had ended with no problems. The sun was coming out and it looked like it was going to be a quiet afternoon on I-5 in Tacoma. That was until 11 a.m., when a semi traveling southbound I-5 pulled to the shoulder at 56th Street due to smoke coming from his cab. Soon the smoke was increasing and by the time Incident Response Team (IRT) member Willie Ramsey got to the scene, the truck cab was fully engulfed in flames.
Fire trucks arrived quickly and Ramsey closed all lanes of I-5 just prior to the scene while crews fought to extinguish the flames. IRT's Kathy Vatter and Brian Farrar blocked and collector-distributor lanes and the southbound on-ramp from 56th Street to I-5. By 11:23 a.m., the two left lanes were reopened to traffic but traffic was backed up for approximately five miles to Port of Tacoma Road. The roadway and all ramps were completely open to traffic by 3 p.m.
The next few days were calm for the IRT until 11 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 12. That’s when a semi crashed into the jersey-barrier on I-5 near Berkley, completely losing the container it was carrying and knocking a light pole into lanes. Northbound I-5 was completely blocked and southbound I-5 had one lane open. Once again, IRT's trio of Vatter, Ramsey and Farrar were all on scene for traffic control. They put signs alerting motorists that the roadway was closed ahead in both directions of I-5. Two-lanes reopened in each direction by 2:20 a.m. with no backups. WSDOT's signal crew was busy trying to repair the light pole while maintenance workers repaired the jersey-wall and swept debris from the roadway. By 3:41 a.m., all lanes in both directions were open to traffic, and IRT members began picking up signs. By 4 a.m., all signs were clear and Ramsey, Vatter and Farrar were headed home.
Olympic Region’s IR didn’t roll over for last commute of ‘07
Posted 1-3-08
The last morning commute of 2007 proved to be a busy one for Olympic Region Incident Response.
At 6:35 a.m., a semi carrying huge metal pipes rounded the corner on the ramp from westbound SR 410 to northbound SR 167. Unfortunately, the driver didn’t make the curve and overturned, partially blocking the ramp.
Washington State Patrol and IR’s Leo Ramsey quickly responded. Ramsey provided traffic control and made sure motorists traveled in the right shoulder of the ramp to safely get around the over-turned semi until a tow truck could arrive.
At 7:40 a.m., Ramsey closed the ramp to traffic so the tow truck could up-right the semi. Unfortunately, the first tow truck didn’t have the capabilities to upright a truck this size and a second tow needed to be called in. Ramsey reopened the lane to traffic until a second tow arrived.
At 8:11 a.m., the second tow arrived and worked on up-righting the semi, and getting the trailer it was towing attached to another truck.
At 8:43 a.m., the ramp reopened to traffic, but the huge metal pipes the semi had been carrying still remained in the median.
At 12:34 p.m., IR’s Kathy Vatter and Willie Ramsey headed back to the scene to close the ramp again so the pipes could be retrieved using a large crane.
The ramp closed to traffic at 1:12 p.m. and finally reopened to traffic at 2:12 p.m., making the last day of 2007 a long one for that unlucky semi-driver.
IRT takes action to protect motorist during truck recovery
On January 2, Incident Response Team member Randy Bateman received a call from the Washington State Patrol regarding a truck that was perched on top of the median barrier on I-5, just north of the Lacamas Creek bridge in Lewis County.
Arriving at the scene, Bateman discovered a large box van had struck the median barrier, causing its driver’s side tires to ride up and over the median. The truck had traveled over 850 feet in this manner before coming to rest with its left side suspended on the median. Bateman closed the adjacent lane as a safety precaution in case the truck rolled over as the tow truck removed it from the barrier. In less than an hour and a half, the truck was successfully removed and all lanes were reopened to traffic.