Traffic jam - credit Lindsay Godfree
Highway shutdowns are always bad for all those people whose travel is affected by the closure. But it is especially bad news for truckers who are stuck in traffic, sent out of route, use up their hours of service or miss their fuel stops when crazies disrupt the interstate traffic like happened this week in Kansas. I am driving on I-70 in Kansas but fortunately for me, was not involved in either of these incidents.
If you missed the news story, authorities had to close a 25-mile stretch of Interstate 70 in Kansas on Wednesday for more than 7 hrs after a man barricaded himself inside his motor home and made threats following a traffic stop made by the Kansas Highway Patrol. He claimed to have a weapon and was going to kill himself. This was the same stretch of highway that was closed Monday due to a hazmat scare.
An officer made the traffic stop around 8 a.m. near Maple Hill about 20 miles west of Topeka Kansas. But the man, believed to be the only occupant, slammed the door of the motor home and “started making threats,” Trooper Mark Engholm of the Highway Patrol said. Report CNN
The same stretch of I-70 was shut down for nine hours on Monday, according to CNN affiliate KSHB, as authorities investigated a possible hazardous materials situation involving a pickup truck.
Investigation continues into incident that closed I-70 for nine hours
A 50-year-old Arkansas man is under arrest in Kansas after a hazardous materials incident prompted the closing of about 20 miles of Interstate 70 west of Topeka. The closing began around 1:15 p.m. Monday, and the Kansas Department of Transportation said it would last through rush hour into the evening.
The incident began when dispatchers in Junction City received an anonymous call Monday morning about hazardous materials in a room at a Ramada Inn. The motel was evacuated while fire and hazmat crews investigated. Police issued a description of a suspect and his vehicle, and the Highway Patrol stopped a pickup truck on I-70 west of Topeka. The truck was covered in anti-government slogans.
A 50-year-old Arkansas man is being held on $100,000 bond after being charged with aggravated criminal threat. He is accused of calling 911 Monday morning and saying hazardous materials had been placed in a room at the Ramada Inn in Junction City. Nothing dangerous was found in either the hotel room or the pickup truck. The highway was re-opened around 10:30 p.m. Monday. KWCH-TV
Of course, people who do these things do not think of the consequences of their actions and are danger to themselves and to others. I can’t help but wish there was a way to get restitution from people who cost others so much money and peace of mind.
Thankfully both these incidents were resolved without incident and the unstable people involved are in custody.
For those truckers who were held up in delivering the mail, FedEx packages, refrigerated food in 100 degree heat here in Kansas, and others with important freight that did not arrive on time…I wish there was some compensation for all you suffered. Maybe just knowing that someone else knows what you went through makes it a little easier. Maybe you just let it all roll off and say, it is just another day of life on the road.
Complete news story on Video: youtube I-70 Again Closed West Of Topeka
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