COLUMBIA COUNTY, Wis. (WFRV) – The Wisconsin State Patrol is investigating a series of crashes that occurred in Columbia County Friday morning that resulted in multiple deaths and injuries.
Authorities say that shortly before 4 a.m. Friday, officers responded to a rear-end crash involving two semis at I-90/94/39 at WIS 60 near Lodi.
At around 5:10 a.m., a straight truck piled into the first crash scene, resulting in a Columbia County Highway worker being seriously injured. Two state troopers sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries. All three were transported to UW Hospital.
At about 6:45 a.m., northbound traffic began lining up due to the earlier crashes. State Patrol says a major, multi-vehicle crash occurred along the northbound interstate near County K, resulting in multiples deaths and injuries. Authorities say a semi-tractor traveling at highway speeds created a chain-reaction crash involving at least seven vehicles – two semi-tractor trailers, a dump truck, and four passenger vehicles. WFRV affiliate WISC says the crash resulted in multiple vehicle fires.
Authorities say the incidents remain under investigation.