Concord Township semi crash spills diesel fuel, shuts down I-90 W for 3 hours

CONCORD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WOIO) - A crash between a semi and SUV caused a debris field with diesel fuel to spill onto I-90 westbound in Concord Township, which shut down the highway for about three hours.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Concord Township Fire Department were sent to the crash at the 198.4 milepost for a crash involving an SUV and tractor trailer that was leaking diesel fuel at 3:42 p.m. on March 14.

Emergency crews arrived to find a red Ford Explorer with heavy disabling damage in the westbound lanes, Lt. Kevin Raico said.

Raico said a large debris field approximately one-tenth of a mile down the highway with vehicle parts, fluids, and a diesel fuel trail led from the Ford to the damaged semi.

The fuel leaking onto the roadway and runoff forced the highway to be shut down from SR-44 to SR-615 for about three hours so the Lake County Hazmat Team and Ohio EPA could assess the scene, stated Raico.

The Lake County Hazmat Team aided the Concord Fire Department and Bob’s Garage in the spill clean up, according to Raico.

Raicosaid the crash is still being investigated, but the preliminary investigation revealed an unknown semi was driving onto I-90 from the westbound rest area and failed to yield to the Ford.

This caused the Ford to swerve into a second semi that was driving in the left lane, according to Raico.

The Ford struck a guardrail before hitting the semi a second time, Raico said.

Raico confirmed the drivers of the Ford and the semi did not report suffering any injuries.

The Ohio EPA directed emergency crews to reopen I-90 westbound once the scene was cleared about three hours later.

The Ohio Department of Transportation and the Lake Metroparks Rangers helped close the roadway.

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