Late Tuesday morning an unidentified semi driver was driving a tanker truck through west central Montana. A second person, the designated dolly operator, was on the 18 wheeler at the time of the truck accident, controlling the empty tanker section which usually holds propane. The semi was described as being 85 feet long and 90,000 pounds.

The tanker truck is owned by a trucking company based in British Columbia, Canada. On Tuesday it was coming out of Kalispell, MT and was headed for North Dakota when the truck accident occurred.

At around 11:00 a.m. Tuesday morning the semi tanker had reached Missoula County and was traveling south on MT SR 83 at about 15 MPH near the town of Seeley Lake.

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According to reports the truck accident occurred when the semi driver suddenly lost control of the 18 wheeler near mile marker 16 and went off the highway onto the shoulder. The semi tanker slid on the soft ground surface and then overturned in a ditch running alongside MT SR 83. The tanker truck came to a rest on its right side, temporarily trapping the truck driver and passenger inside the cab section and blocking the southbound lane of the highway.

No other persons or vehicles were involved in the truck accident.

Local first responders rushed to the scene of the rollover crash. Fortunately the truck driver and the dolly operator were able to get out of the semi tanker and were not injured in the truck accident.

Montana Highway Patrol troopers took control of the crash site and diverted motorists around the truck accident scene. Highway crews worked all Tuesday afternoon to clear the traffic lanes of MT SR 83. The cab section of the tanker truck was towed from the collision area after several hours, however officials stated that it would take a day or two to get a heavy duty truck with a crane up to get the flipped tanker section back up on its wheels and hauled off the highway. Until then the tanker truck would continue to block the southbound lane of MT SR 83.

The crane was brought in Wednesday morning and the tanker section was hauled off the highway, a full day after the truck accident.

Police have conducted a reconstruction of the single vehicle truck accident but have not yet released their report. The unidentified driver of the tanker truck reportedly told officials that there was some type of mechanical problem with the semi truck just before it went out of control and overturned on the highway. It is believed the tanker truck was taken to a site where investigators with the Montana State Commercial Vehicle Unit can inspect the semi for mechanical defects that may have led to the crash.

No citations have been brought at this time and the truck accident remains under investigation.

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On Tuesday morning a semi trailer truck owned by USF Reddaway was traveling east on River Drive in Great Falls, MT. At the same time a semi trailer truck owned by Watkins & Shepard was westbound on River Drive. USF Reddaway Inc. is based in Clackamas, Oregon and Watkins & Shepard is based in Helena, Montana.

The truck accident happened shortly before 9:00 a.m. Tuesday morning as the two 18 wheelers reached the intersection of River Drive and 15th Street North in the north section of Great Falls, just south of the Missouri River. According to police, the westbound Watkins & Shepard semi truck was attempting to make a left turn onto 15th Street North when it collided head-on with the eastbound USF Reddaway semi trailer.

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No other vehicles were involved in the truck accident.

Local emergency teams responded to the truck accident scene and treated the two drivers. The driver of the USF Reddaway truck required additional treatment and was transported to nearby Benefis Health System Hospital in Great Falls. The extent of the driver’s injuries was not released to the public but they are believed to be non life threatening.

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The head-on collision between the two trailer trucks caused considerable damage to both rigs and shut down the intersection for most of the morning. Police rerouted traffic around the intersection for several hours while a crew from Carnahan’s Towing worked to clean-up the truck accident scene. Debris from the two trucks was strewn about the intersection and at least one of the rigs spilled diesel fuel and antifreeze onto the roadway. The crew was using an absorbent powder to soak up the fluids and worked to keep them from entering nearby water systems.

The truck accident caused long delays in the area’s morning commute as police closed off eastbound River Drive at 9th Street and diverted traffic to alternate roads. The two disabled trucks blocked the northbound lane of 15th Street which provides access to the 15th Street Bridge. The closures would last for several hours and the traffic lanes were finally reopened Tuesday afternoon.

Authorities have conducted a reconstruction of the collision but have not released their findings at this time. Drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors in the truck accident. One theory suggests that the turn light at the intersection does not provide enough time for semi trucks to make a turn safely.

No charges or citations have been brought at this time and the truck accident remains under investigation.

Late Friday morning 29 year old Tanner C. Lee of Choteau, MT was driving a semi tractor trailer south on Interstate 15. He was carrying 41 cows in the trailer section of his truck and was on his way to deliver them to a facility owned by North Montana Feeders. North Montana Feeders also owned the semi trailer and the head of cattle and is based in Choteau, MT.

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At about the same time 46 year old Jodee Hoovestal of Helena was driving a pickup truck with an attached horse trailer on the interstate when she reportedly missed her exit. Ms. Hoovestal pulled her pickup and trailer into the restricted median crossing of the highway, which is for emergency vehicles only. She was apparently stopped and partially blocking the southbound lanes while she waited for a chance to reenter the highway.

At about 11:45 a.m. Friday the semi trailer carrying the cattle was traveling in the passing lanes of I-15 near the exit for Lincoln Road when it came upon the pick-up truck and horse trailer blocking the lane of the interstate. The driver, Mr. Tanner, swerved to avoid hitting the stopped pick-up and trailer and crossed over the interstate. The trailer truck went of the edge of the interstate into a ditch and then flipped over onto its passenger side, trapping the cattle in the trailer section.

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Montana Highway Patrol troopers and local emergency response teams responded to the site of the truck accident. The driver of the semi trailer was reportedly able to get out of the cab and was not injured in the rollover collision. The driver of the pick-up truck was not hit and did not suffer any injuries.

A squad from the West Valley Fire department came to the truck accident site and worked to get the cattle free from the overturned trailer section. They cut holes in the sides of the truck so that the cattle could get out. Once the cows were free others worked to calm the cattle and to corral them into a field on the nearby Sieban Ranch.

Troopers shut down an area around the truck accident site so that the cows could get out of the trailer safely away from any traffic.

When all the cattle were corralled it was determined that four of the cows were killed in the truck accident and five others were injured. At this time the owners of the cattle, North Montana Feeders, could not estimate the value of the lost cattle. A spokesperson said that they would have to determine which cattle were lost and injured before they could estimate the cost.

The semi trailer truck carrying the cattle was also destroyed in the truck accident. A heavy duty tow truck was brought to the site to remove the wreckage from the interstate.

Officials investigating the incident cited the driver of the pick-up truck, Ms. Hoovestal, with Illegally Using the Median Crossing. She may face additional legal action pending the completion of the truck accident investigation.

Billings Montana reporter Drew Trafton from KTVQ in Billings reported this story.

Billings, MT – Highway 72 just north of Belfry was closed for more than six hours Sunday after a semi-truck rolled over and burst into flames, killing two people.

Shortly after 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, a family living on Highway 72 heard a loud noise and saw a ball of fire move across their front lawn.

“We’ve had truck wrecks but nothing like this exploding gas and stuff.”

Belfry Fire Chief Greg Maddox was on the first tuck to arrive on scene. “The tanker came around the corner too fast and rolled it here. And tore his tank open and ignited the flames here. They started up in the corner and then rolled down to here, and it was all a ball of flame through here.”

“A lot of flames, because the truck behind us here, was fully engulfed yet. And the house, the heat was really intense by the house. We had to move our truck down a little farther.”

Chief Maddox says a HAZMAT crew rushed to cool off the semi-truck and handle the petroleum leak while the fire crews focused on the house and the family inside.

“It’s pretty hard to train for something like this, we’ve kinda trained with oil and gas fires but nothing like this. Right at the time we got here we were to save the house, or control the house behind us, we didn’t know if the occupants got out or not. We thought the house was engulfed but we managed to control the flames there and then we started cooling off the truck that’s behind us. We just used a lot of water. To cool the iron off. To help start putting out the flames.”

Carbon County officials have released the names of a Fromberg couple who were killed in a fiery semi-truck crash which happened on Highway 72 between Bridger and Belfry.

The sheriff’s department says Kevin Woeppel, 39, and Jodi Woeppel, 46, were killed in Sunday’s crash.

The Montana Highway Patrol reports that the driver of the semi lost control of the truck which overturned in the front of a home directly adjacent to Highway 72. The rig was hauling gasoline and diesel fuel and caught fire.

The accident forced the highway to be closed for more than six hours Sunday and officials say those inside the nearby house were able to evacuate with no injuries.

A clean up crew on the scene says the mixture of fuels in the semi-truck added an extra element of difficulty to the clean-up.

“The tanker had both gasoline and diesel on it. The gasoline, one it burns very hot, so there were those issues were we had to stay back a little farther than normal” explained Tim Mulholland an Environmental Engineer with Hanser’s Automotive. “But also, it travels to the ground fairly quickly, so we wanted to make sure we get out there the next day and dig up as much as we can, so if it rains it doesn’t percolate down into the ground water.”

There’s also a ground well underneath the wreckage, which is the main concern at this time. Officials say it could take up to a week before the site is completely cleared.

The family is uninjured although their house and a truck the family owned did sustain some fire damage.

It is unknown to Montana’s News Station where the semi truck was headed, but we’re told the semi-truck was property of Farstad Oil, Inc.

Members of the Belfry Fire Department say they respond to several accidents on the turn in Highway 72 known as Lynn’s Corner.

Truck Accidents 360 is a news blog where you can find truck accident and attorney information. If you are looking for an attorney or lawyer who specializes in big rig or semi truck truck injury litigation, you can find Montana truck accident attorneys or Billings truck accident lawyers here.