A sudden burst of hail over Interstate 5 in the vicinity of Hazel Dell led to three crashes in 19 minutes Wednesday afternoon.
The hailstorm briefly covered the ground and the road, causing chaos that backed traffic up to Northeast 78th Street southbound and Mill Plain Boulevard northbound, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation’s traffic monitoring system.
Washington State Patrol Trooper Will Finn said the first crash, reported at 2:09 p.m., was in the northbound lanes and resulted in no reported injuries. The second, at 2:19 p.m., was a spinout in the southbound lanes. Again, there were no reported injuries.
The final crash, at 2:27 p.m., involved two vehicles in the southbound lanes near the Main Street exit, at Milepost 4. Two minor injuries were reported, but neither patient wanted to go to the hospital. The roadway was blocked for about 20 minutes, Finn said.
