SEATTLE — A semi-truck rollover blocked several lanes of northbound Interstate 5 just south of the West Seattle Bridge Friday morning.
The crash was first reported Friday at 4:26 a.m., according to Washington State Patrol Trooper Nick King. It didn't clear until just after 9 a.m.
The driver told troopers that he was traveling in the second furthest right lane when he lightly tapped the brakes and began to lose control of the truck.
"At freeway speeds the weather at that time in the morning was not good," King said. "It was raining rather heavily, so it was pretty rainy and misty, low light conditions as well."
The semi-truck slid to the left side of the freeway and crashed into the cement barrier, according to King. It then rode up on top of the barrier system and began "skateboard railing" on top of the barrier.
The truck's trailer helped roll it back into the northbound lanes instead of continuing into the southbound lanes and potentially colliding head-on with oncoming traffic.
There were no other vehicles involved in the crash.
“Extremely fortunate to go from extreme right to extreme left and not hit a single thing except the barrier," King said. "Unbelievable.”
The fuel tank was dislodged in the crash and rolled into the dirt median, spilling 80 gallons of fuel. However, there's no storm drain in the median, and the fuel was contained to the dirt, according to King.
The driver was not injured, according to King.
Backups on northbound I-5 were about seven miles as of 8 a.m.
Several other incidents also caused backups throughout the Puget Sound region Friday morning. A truck fire on southbound State Route 167 near Auburn that blocked lanes for several hours has been cleared.
A police investigation on the westbound Interstate 90 ramp to State Route 18 also blocked traffic. The roadway has since re-opened. A 38-year-old woman was arrested after allegedly stealing a Kent police car and leading authorities on a pursuit.