Semi causes 4-vehicle crash on I-70 near Vail, sends 2 to hospital

Editor’s note: This story was updated to include information about recovering the semi on the side of Interstate 70.

Eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 shut down Wednesday night around 7:30 p.m. near mile marker 182 in East Vail for a four-vehicle crash that seriously injured two, according to Colorado State Patrol. The interstate was closed much of the night and reopened around 2:40 a.m., according to an Eagle County Alert.

The crash occurred around 7:23 p.m. when a Volvo semitrailer headed westbound down Vail Pass collided with what’s being described as a “self-contained truck” in front of it while traveling in the left lane, according to Trooper Gabriel Moltrer with Colorado State Patrol.

Both vehicles continued to move westbound, into the median, through the cable rail and into the eastbound lanes, Moltrer said. The semitrailer came to a rest on the right side of the road after fully crossing the eastbound lanes. The second truck also came to a stop on the right side of the road, but partially on the shoulder.

The Colorado Department of Transportation plans to recover the semi on Tuesday, Jan. 14, beginning at 9 a.m., according to Communications Manager Austyn Dineen. The closure is expected to last about six hours and traffic will be rerouted to U.S.Route 24 to Colorado Highway 91 and back on eastbound Interstate 70

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A Mazda CX-90 and a BMW traveling eastbound collided with debris from both trucks and stopped on the eastbound shoulder.

The 67-year-old man out of California driving the semitrailer was transported to the hospital for serious injuries, according to Moltrer. The 50-year-old male driver of the “self-contained truck also was transported for serious injuries, according to Moltrer.

A 36-year-old male out of Kady, Texas, was driving the Mazda that had four passengers. None reported injuries. The driver of the BMW X3, a 50-year-old female out of Grand Junction, was also injury-free.