ORLANDO, Fla. – Interstate 4 in Orlando was closed for hours Friday morning after a tractor-trailer crashed and spilled lumber onto the roadway.
[TRAFFIC ALERT: Check conditions for your commute]
I-4 west was closed at Maitland Boulevard around 2:30 a.m., but two lanes were reopened about four hours later after crews cleared the wood from the interstate. Traffic remained backed up during rush hour, however.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, 60-year-old Carl Thompson, of Winter Haven, was traveling eastbound when he began coughing and lost control of the truck, crashing into a concrete barrier near Lee Road and spilling the lumber onto westbound lanes. Thompson, who was ticketed for careless driving, was not injured.
Three other vehicles, including an ambulance responding to the accident, crashed into the debris, troopers said. The paramedics were not injured.
One of the vehicles, a Honda Accord, rolled over several times after hitting the lumber, troopers said. Dianiane Gutierrez, 31, of the Bronx, and Sabrina Johnson, of Orlando, suffered minor injuries and were taken to Florida Hospital South.
The driver of a Dodge Charger stuck the rear of the ambulance, said troopers, who added that the driver, 27-year-old Juan Angeles, of Apopka, suffered minor injuries.
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