Freezing Fog Contributed To 30-Vehicle Pileup On Washington Interstate

Thirty vehicles collided early Wednesday morning on Interstate 90, forcing an eight-hour closure of the eastbound lanes of the freeway east of Ellensburg.

The crash near Kittitas was reported in the eastbound lanes about 5:15 a.m. First responders arrived at 5:25 a.m., Washington State Patrol Trooper Collin Cumaravel said.

Some lanes reopened at 3:20 p.m., Washington State Department of Transportation spokeswoman Summer Derrey said. All lanes were open again by Wednesday evening.

The crash involved 12 semitrucks and 18 cars, WSP said in a tweet. Freezing fog and speeding was a main contributor to the collision, WSP said.

‘The fortunate thing in this situation is there were a lot of routes around this closure,’ Derrey said.