The crash caused a fire that raged for hours, and the tunnel remained closed on Friday evening.
A multivehicle crash in a highway tunnel in southwestern Wyoming on Friday killed at least two people, injured several others and caused a fire that raged for hours as officials rushed to evacuate the passage, the authorities said.
The crash occurred at 11:37 a.m. under a snow-dusted hill in Green River, Wyo., according to the State Transportation Department. By 5 p.m., the tunnel, which leads traffic west on Interstate 80, had been evacuated and the scene had “been contained,” the department said in a statement.
It was not clear what had caused the crash or how many vehicles were involved, but one of them — a semi truck transporting transformers — had leaked oil, feeding the fire, said State Senator John Kolb, who represents the area.
Mr. Kolb said Friday evening that more than 10 people were receiving treatment for injuries, and that three area fire departments were still working to extinguish the blaze.
It was unclear when the tunnel might reopen.
“They’ve got really all hands on deck trying to control the situation,” Mr. Kolb said in an interview, adding that there was a “high likelihood of damage” to the tunnel.
The Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County in Rock Springs, Wyo., issued a statement on Friday afternoon urging people to “refrain from visiting the hospital” unless they were experiencing emergencies, citing the “mass casualty incident” at the tunnel. But the hospital said Friday evening that it had resumed regular operations.
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Source: Elections - nytimes.com
