Seattleites might think their afternoon rush hour traffic stinks, but those near Bellingham have found it to be quite literal Tuesday afternoon when a truck hauling porta-potties crashed on I-5.
And yes, the tanks were apparently not empty.
The two-vehicle collision happened in the southbound lanes at Lake Samish just after 3:30 p.m.
The crash blocked both lanes of the freeway for about an hour as crews cleared the wreckage and a Hazmat team cleaned up about 20 gallons of spilled... porta potty material. The backup extended five miles at 4:30 p.m. before one lane reopened. The final lane reopened at 6 p.m.
Trooper Mark Francis said there were only minor injuries. There is no word yet what caused the crash.
The state DOT Twitter feeds did have a little fun with the subject of the crash, however:
- Now this day really stinks! All lanes SB I-5 near Lake Samish closed due to a collision. Hear it involves truck with porta potties.
- Debating between #portanado or #pottiapocolypse for updates to this one.
- SB I-5 constipated south of Bellingham. 5-mile backup from Lake Samish to just south of Fairhaven. #pottypocalypse