Vehicles at standstill on I-5 hit by truck

MOUNT VERNON, Wash. – A dump truck carrying gravel crossed the median of Interstate 5 on Saturday in Mount Vernon, injuring at least six people when it plowed into oncoming traffic that was stopped while police investigated an earlier shooting, authorities said.

Twenty-three vehicles were involved in the collision north of Seattle, and traffic was backed up for miles as lanes were closed in both directions.

Injuries ranged from minor to critical. Two people were airlifted to a Seattle hospital, said Trooper Mark Francis of the Washington State Patrol.

The truck driver had a broken arm and chest injuries, and may have had a medical condition that caused the crash, Francis told KING-TV.

Authorities said the truck was hauling a mixture of clay and gravel and traveling southbound when it broke through a cable barrier in the median into the northbound lanes about 8:30 a.m.

“It was bumper-to-bumper traffic, and then … it was like the semi just flew over the whole median and there was dirt everywhere,” witness Bobby Grace told KOMO-TV. “So much dirt, it was like a sandstorm. It was astonishing.”

Before the crash, traffic was slowed for the shooting investigation. Troopers were called to the area and found two men in their 20s dead inside a vehicle just after 3 a.m., the Seattle Times reported.

A passenger escaped and called police, telling investigators that a vehicle pulled up next to the car and someone inside opened fire.