Semi filled with 40,000 pounds of chicken feathers overturns on I-5 in Federal Way

A semi filled with chicken feathers overturned on northbound Interstate 5 in Federal Way, snarling the morning commute.

The Washington State Department of Transportation said 40,000 pounds of feathers were spilled onto the roadway. All lanes were blocked at times as crews worked to remove the truck and scoop up the feathers. The freeway was reopened about 7:30 a.m., but the backup stretched for miles.

The driver of the semi that rolled over early Wednesday south of South 320th Street admitted to Washington State Patrol investigators that he had fallen asleep, State Patrol spokesman Trooper Rick Johnson said.

Johnson said that in similar cases drivers have been cited for negligent driving in the second degree and fined $550. The company that employed the driver will also likely have to pay for the clean up and to repair a section of a guardrail damaged in the crash, he said.

The agency’s traffic engineers did the math: 40,000 pounds of chicken feathers would mean about 18 million feathers.