Truck Rips Down Overhead Sign On I-80/94
UPDATED 04/04/12 11:27 a.m.
LAKE STATION, Ind. (CBS) -- Eastbound I-80/94 in Northwest Indiana was shut down for some time early Wednesday, after a semi-trailer truck ripped down an overhead sign on the expressway.
CBS 2's Kris Habermehl reports the truck went out of control and ripped down the sign that directed motorists toward I-94 and Detroit. The semi then went down through the ditch on the side of the road, leaving tracks in the grass, and came back upright again on the roadway.
The refrigerated trailer of the truck was ripped wide open on the side, and boxes of refrigerated products spilled out. The tires were also ripped right off the side of the truck.
CBS 2's Derrick Young reports the Borman Expressway was closed at Ripley Street as of 5:40 a.m. Crews had to drag the sign off the roadway and dismantle it.
All traffic was being forced off at the Ripley Street exit, and traffic was trudging along for some distance to the west. No problems were reported on the westbound side.
By 6:45 a.m., the left lane on the eastbound side had reopened, but traffic was at a standstill for miles.
The truck driver was a 29-year-old man from Iowa, the Sun-Times Media Wire reported. The Freightliner semi was owned by Brown Trucking Corp. of Des Moines, Iowa, and was hauling meat products to Goshen, Ind., the wire reported.
All lanes were back open by the 8 a.m. hour, although traffic was still slow.
