Hay now, be careful!

WALLACE – Both east and west bound lanes of Interstate-90 were closed briefly Monday night following a trailer versus car collision near Wallace.

At 9:54 p.m. on Sept. 3, Fire and EMS crews from Shoshone County Fire District No. 1 were dispatched to a I-90 vehicle crash near Milepost 64 involving a wrecked sedan.

The sedan and its two occupants were heading eastbound when a semi-trailer full of hay bales in the westbound lane suddenly disconnected from its truck. The loose trailer then smashed into the center median, causing the sedan to collide into the protruding barrier; all while sending hay all over the road and effectively shutting down all lanes of traffic.

While medical personnel worked to remove the injured occupants of the sedan, Shoshone County Sheriff’s deputies, Idaho State Police troopers and even fellow motorists spread out across the Interstate to move as much hay as they could so that the lanes could reopen.

Both the driver, a 45 year-old male, and the passenger, a 19 year-old female, were transported to Shoshone Medical Center in Kellogg via ambulance.

The driver was initially found unresponsive, but was breathing and had a pulse. The passenger may have suffered a concussion.

Firefighter/ EMT Matt Bodemer believes that the occupants of the Sedan survived the crash because both were wearing their seat belts. No other injuries were reported.

The makeshift clean-up crew were initially only able to get one lane open to ease congestion, but with the arrival of some more machinery, all lanes were eventually cleared.

Firefighter/ EMT John Miller was happy with the crew’s response and thankful to those who assisted in clearing the roadway.

“A big thank to the deputies, troopers and concerned citizens who helped,” he said. “Everybody pitched in to open one lane temporarily.”