Big rig injury accident leads to extensive southbound I-5 Highway backup

A horrific, injury accident involving two big rigs on the I-5 Highway in Lebec created a significant traffic backup for miles Wednesday morning and into the afternoon.

The accident happened around 7 a.m., as one truck that was pulled over on the right shoulder of the highway was slammed into from behind by another truck.

With SkyCal overhead around 9:45 a.m., a truck's mangled cab was visible, while the other truck's trailer could be seen broken open with its contents pouring out onto the road. One driver was trapped in a truck and had to be cut out and flown to a nearby hospital. 

Highway lanes were condensed to a single lane at the accident site near Smokey Bear Road, as traffic backed up for miles into the Gorman area. 

Around noon, two lanes opened up around the accident site, with lanes three and four still closed.