Animal guts spilled onto Interstate 90 near Freya Street

A tractor-trailer spilled animal guts onto the westbound lanes of Interstate 90 between Freya and Havana streets, creating a putrid, slimy hazard for drivers just before rush hour on Thursday.

Trooper Randy Elkins of the Washington State Patrol said a rendering truck was hauling cow and horse organs in an open-top trailer when the driver braked quickly to avoid a collision at about 4 p.m. The viscera “sloshed out of the front” of the trailer and onto the freeway, he said.

“The trooper I just talked to at the scene said it was the most disgusting thing he’s ever smelled,” Elkins said. “He said they’re having issues with it because it is so slick. They’re having trouble picking it up.”

Workers cleared the mess with a tractor and brought in a water truck to spray down the pavement. Elkins said the afternoon heat had partially liquefied the innards, creating a hazard for drivers. The affected lanes reopened within about two hours.

It wasn’t immediately clear where the truck was headed, or if the driver would be ticketed, Elkins said.