YORK COUNTY, Pa. — A multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 83 southbound in York County caused multiple delays and backups for drivers.
According to 511PA, the crash happened along I-83 at Exit 16A and 16B. There were ramp and lane closures in effect, but FOX43's crew at the scene reported that traffic began moving again around 3:20 p.m.
According to Fritzi Scheffler with PennDOT, at 1:54 p.m., a dump truck hauling large pieces of scrap metal attempted to go under the Queen Street Bridge when the scrap metal struck the bridge and caused debris to fly from the truck and bridge, hitting a tractor-trailer traveling behind it.
Southbound traffic, beginning at the Mount Rose exit, was limited to the left lane only as EMS began treating the tractor-trailer's driver, who was injured and taken to an area hospital. The dump truck driver was uninjured.
The York County Hazmat Team was also called to the scene to mitigate a diesel fuel spill from the truck of about 50-75 gallons. It was later discovered that debris from the impact of the dump truck striking the bridge careened into the southbound tractor-trailer, rupturing its saddle tank and triggering the fuel spill.
This is the third time in less than two years that the Queen Street Bridge has been struck.
"This is a highly traveled highway that a lot of trucks use and travel through there safely without any incident," said David Thompson, community relations coordinator for PennDOT District 8. "It still boggles your mind that trucks hit this."
In February of 2022, a truck carrying an oversized load collided with the bridge. Six months later, a dump truck that had its bed raised struck the overpass again.
"I think the residents in that area have a good reason to be concerned when this has happened so many times," said Thompson. "That bridge has been restricted for quite a while due to the initial impact and then we were about ready to fix it again and it got hit again."
PennDOT officials say these are incidents that can be easily prevented.
"Motorists need to be aware of their vehicles and what the limitations are," said Thompson. "We've got to be diligent because these things can be catastrophic when they occur. These things could have been prevented."
A PennDOT inspection determined Wednesday's crash caused "negligible" damage and has been cleared. The crash also did not affect the ongoing work that is being done to fix the bridge from the previous incidents.
PennDOT expects the work to be completed by February 2024 as originally planned.