It’s becoming an all-too familiar accident scenario on I-90 near Snoqualmie. Around 1:15PM on February 28, 2017, North Bend resident Melissa Grant witnessed a sedan collide with the back of a semi waiting on westbound I-90 near the SR 18 interchange.
Grant said she never saw the sedan’s brake lights before it collided with the rear of a waiting semi – at what appeared to be freeway speed. She said debris flew across the freeway during impact.
Within 30 minutes of the accident, Eastside Fire and Rescue, Fall City and Snoqualmie Fire Departments, along with Bellevue Medics, had the female driver extracted and on the way to Harborview Medical Center with serious injuries.
Acting Snoqualmie Fire Department Lt. Robert Lasswell said the accident occurred about 1/8 of a mile from the I-90/SR 18 interchange. He said it appeared the semi truck was waiting in a line up of vehicles turning left to enter SR 18, and the back up had pushed onto the freeway. [This is common at the signal-controlled interchange.]
Lt. Lasswell said the Volkswagen Jetta sustained significant damage during the collision, explaining that it appeared the driver just didn’t notice the traffic back up in time. He said when he left the scene, two lanes and the right shoulder were closed for a Washington State Patrol investigation.
At 2:30PM, WSP Trooper Rick Johnson tweeted that the right two lanes of westbound I-90 just east of SR 18 would be blocked until approximately 3:30PM while the accident scene was cleared.
Comments
How many will it take???
It’s about time for a clover leaf in that intersection.