Top Story

Another truck crash on Hwy. 68

By ALICE POPOVICI/The Daily News

Sunday, July 6, 2008 12:41 AM CDT

STALLED: Motorists stranded for hours on Highway 68 near Golden Valley Saturday afternoon watch the thick cloud of smoke rising from a fuel tanker on fire. ALICE POPOVICI/The Daily News

BULLHEAD CITY - A cloud of black smoke drifted into Golden Valley as traffic on both sides of Highway 68 ground to a stop after a two-truck collision Saturday afternoon.

The accident between the eastbound fuel tanker and car-carrier occurred around 2:26 p.m. at milepost 14, according to Arizona Department of Public Safety officials. Around 2:40 p.m. the highway was closed in both directions at milepost 14 and milepost 5 while Hazmat teams assessed the situation.

The Bullhead City Police Department and the Arizona Department of Transportation blocked the highway at La Puerta Road, rerouting long lines of traffic back into the city. A few motorists tired of crawling along in traffic and turned their cars around across the median.

Several miles up the road, motorists were stranded for hours, watching the flames and smoke from a distance. The driver of one of the trucks was flown from the scene by helicopter, witnesses said, but it was unclear how serious the injuries were.

The highway was reportedly being reopened late Saturday evening. No further information was available at press time.