Just after 7:15 pm Friday night, New Waverly Firefighters and Walker County EMS responded to find a heavy-duty crane truck on top of the K-rail that divides the north and southbound freeway lanes. The truck had been southbound just before the New Waverly exit and came to rest blocking most of the southbound side and hanging over the rail into the first northbound lane. At least one passenger car was also involved in the crash. The EMS crew quickly moved the driver into their unit and began treating him for non-life-threatening injuries. Firefighters checked the passenger car for other victims but there were no other significant injuries reported. The crash scattered debris along several hundred feet of the freeway and ruptured the truck’s fuel tank, spilling diesel and oil over most of the southbound lanes, and bringing traffic to a halt. Firefighters diked up the spill, leaving the shoulder open so drivers trapped on the freeway could move past the scene. A DPS Trooper coordinated the flow of traffic and clean-up crews, working with County and State Emergency Management Officials to bring the equipment needed to clear the freeway. A TxDOT contractor set up traffic control lanes and two heavy-duty wreckers was brought in to lift the truck off the center rail. A hazmat clean-up crew responded to finish cleaning up the spilled fuel and finally, crews removed debris from the main lanes before re-opening the freeway. Traffic remained heavy late into the night, but no other serious secondary accidents were reported.
