COLUMBIA COUNTY, Pa. — Traffic was backed up for miles in the westbound lanes on Interstate 80 in Columbia County after a tractor-trailer flipped onto its side, its cab sliding into the median and its trailer blocking both westbound lanes.
The crash happened around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, roughly 2.5 miles before the Bloomsburg/Lightstreet Exit 236.
Newswatch 16’s crew and truck were among the dozens of vehicles trapped in the standstill for hours.
"It's going to be a long time until they get it out of there,” said truck driver Mike Madden from Turbotville.
Madden says he's been driving trucks for decades and is no stranger to getting stuck behind crashes.
He says it's a very annoying occupational hazard.
"I'm doing for 40 years. 40. You never get used to it,” said Madden.
As drivers waited, towing crews removed debris from the truck's load that spilled all over the highway before getting the truck upright.
Truck driver Brent Tidball from Ontario says it's a careful job not to cause any more damage to the truck and its load caused by the crash.
"From what I understand, his load's all over the road up there too. So, they have to get that out, sometimes to stop any further damage,” said Tidball. “I mean, when those heavy reactors pick them trucks up, they try to minimize any more damage.”
And three hours after the crash, one lane of westbound Interstate 80 reopened around 7 p.m.
Driver Mark Czaja says his trip from Connecticut to California could resume with a bit of a delay.
“Well, we were hoping two and a half days. Now, three, three and a half days,” said Czaja.State police are investigating the cause of the tractor-trailer crash on I-80 in Columbia County.
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