Traffic mishap closes mountain highway
NORTH UNION TWP. – Route 40 west was shut down for about five hours Sunday after a tractor-trailer jackknifed just prior to the runaway truck ramp around 2:30 p.m. Trooper Juan J. Curry of the state police in Uniontown said James Howell III, 40, of Port Orange, Fla., was driving the 1998 Freightliner tractor-trailer that lost control on the westbound lanes.
According to Curry, the tractor-trailer struck an embankment then jackknifed only to travel back onto the roadway and strike the concrete median. He said the tractor-trailer came to rest blocking both westbound lanes, causing the traffic tie-up along the Summit Mountain roadway.
Howell suffered minor injuries in the accident, police said.
Police noted Howell wore a seatbelt.
Firefighters from Hopwood and North Union Township and Uniontown Fireman’s Ambulance responded to the scene, along with state police.