Shortly after 8 pm Monday, first responders responded to a major accident on I-45 southbound at the Lake Woodlands exit ramp. MCSO, Shenandoah and DPS were on the scene along with several ambulances. All lanes were closed except for the left shoulder. A driver in a BMW decided he needed to get to the front of the line and cut into traffic. Traveling at least 35 miles per hour as he started to cut into traffic, he slammed into the rear of the Needham Fire Department’s $2 million ladder truck. This is the truck used for structure fires and to carry rescue tools. The impact pushed the 70,000-pound fire truck forward at least 2 feet and shifted the body on the frame. After the impact, the BMW hit another vehicle, a Mercedes. That impact spun the Mercedes out of control,l slamming it backwards into the Woodlands fire truck, damaging it. Most of the southbound lanes were closed for several hours as the crash was investigated. Milstead Heavy Duty responded to the scene to tow the ladder truck back to Needham’s Fire Station on SH 242. With the ladder truck out of service, Needham will have to depend on mutual aid from departments such as Woodlands, Conroe, South Montgomery County, and Porter, causing some delay in response. It could be months before the truck can return to service. The Woodlands truck was drivable. Just as that wreck cleared, a vehicle slammed into the rear of a tanker at that location. Recently, due to the trucks being hit, Fire Departments have been sending blocker trucks to block the roadway. North Montgomery County uses an 18-wheeler, Porter an old 3000-gallon tanker. With tonight’s scene, dozens of first responders were within the scene perimeter. Thankfully, they were not injured.