Tractor Trailer Overturns On Bay Bridge During High Winds
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ)— It wasn't just rain and snow---high winds also wreaked havoc across the area Wednesday. The Bay Bridge closed down completely after a frightening tractor trailer crash.
Meghan McCorkell has more on the near-disaster.
The Bay Bridge was shut down for four hours after a tractor trailer nearly went right off the side of it.
A tractor trailer hung precariously after careening into a guardrail on the Bay Bridge. The driver managed to escape with minor injuries but rescue crews had their own problems with high winds ripping the door off one of their vehicles.
"They're working really hard in very serious winds trying to figure out how to upright this truck," said Captain Jeff Long.
Crews were eventually able to tow the truck off the bridge, but with winds topping 55 miles per hour, officials shut down traffic in both directions anyway.
Cars lined up for miles during rush hour, waiting for the bridge to reopen but the conditions were too intense and the winds too strong for the bridge to reopen.
"Sitting here waiting for it to open up. It's about all I can do," said driver Steve Thomas.
"It's a pain. I want to get home," said a driver who didn't want to be identified.
"I'm just hoping the wind dies down. I'm going to sit here for a little while, wait and see," said driver Steve Boyette.
After hours of waiting, traffic finally started moving again. Now officials are investigating what caused the wreck in the first place.
"We're certainly going to be looking at the load and wind speed and the vehicle to try and make a determination of exactly what happened," said MdTA Police Sgt. Jonathan Green.
That's something a lot of stalled commuters want to know, too.
The bridge was under level one wind restrictions at the time of the accident. Investigators are looking into whether the driver of that truck was abiding by those restrictions.
The Maryland Transportation Authority has also issued wind restrictions on the Key Bridge and the Hatem Bridge.
