3 accidents involving semis slow traffic on Utah roads

Three semitrailer accidents in Salt Lake and Weber counties Thursday morning resulted in only minor injuries but created some big headaches for motorists.

The first accident happened about 1 a.m. at the mouth of Weber Canyon on Interstate 84. A tractor-trailer hauling apples and onions flipped onto its side after the driver apparently dozed off, and jerked the wheel too hard to overcorrect once he woke up, said Utah Highway Patrol trooper Cameron Roden.

The freeway was shut down for several hours while crews responded to clean up the mess, including all of the produce. The semi driver received minor injuries.

About 7 a.m., another semitralier rear-ended a Jeep, which in turn was pushed into the back of a Utah Department of Transportation vehicle on northbound Interstate 15 near 2700 South. The driver of the Jeep was transported to the hospital to be treated for minor injuries, Roden said. The freeway was shut down for a short time while emergency crews responded.

About an hour later, in a separate incident, a double-belly dump truck, with a full load of gravel in both trailers, exited U-201 too quickly onto 8400 West and had brake problems, Roden said. The large vehicle was unable to stop and flipped onto its side, falling onto another semi pulling two empty tankers that was stopped at the red light at the end of the off-ramp.

The rig hauling gravel and one of its trailers flipped, spilling the rocks onto the road. A passenger vehicle that was stopped behind the semi at the light barely missed having the gravel truck fall on top of it, Roden said.

Clean-up crews said 8400 West at U-201 would be closed until about 11:30 a.m. or noon.

Charges against the drivers in all three incidents were pending Thursday.

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