Eastbound 70 still closed after crane boom falls on South Mountain: Live updates

Eastbound Interstate 70 is closed near Crystal Falls Drive after a crane boom fell on the interstate around 8:30 a.m. Friday, a Washington County 911 supervisor said.

It was not immediately known if there were injuries, she said.

The state is replacing the I-70 bridges over Crystal Falls Drive, which is west of the Washington/Frederick county line.

There is a work zone set up in that area.

Interstate 70 reopened after crane collapse

Interstate 70 has reopened after a crane collapsed onto the eastbound side of the highway, snarling traffic for hours.

The Maryland State Highway CHART website no longer listed the interstate as closed as of 12:50 p.m.

Interstate reclosed

Interstate 70 remains closed after emergency workers allowed truck drivers to move their vehicles from the interstate.

Maryland State Police troopers remained at the scene, a spokeswoman at the Hagerstown barrack said.

Traffic is being detoured off the interstate at the U.S. 40 exit.

It was not immediately clear when the highway would be reopened.

Part of interstate reopened

The drivers of tractor-trailers and box trucks left on the highway were told just after 11 a.m. to get back in their vehicles because traffic was being let through.

It appears not all of the lanes would be reopened because a piece of steel equipment the crane was carrying remained sticking out into the right lane of traffic.

Workers at the scene used a blow torch and a track hoe to remove the collapsed crane.

Traffic being redirected from highway

Passenger vehicles that were stuck behind the fallen crane on Interstate 70 are being turned around and are getting off the highway.

Mt. Aetna Fire Chief Anthony Veney told The Herald-Mail that the vehicles were being directed to a highway crossing at Black Rock Road and sent onto westbound I-70.

Meanwhile, tractor-trailers and box trucks are remaining on the highway as workers use a blow torch to cut the crane boom into pieces, making it easier to lift.

Highway traffic is being detoured at U.S. 40.

Vehicle on highway damaged in collapse

A vehicle that was traveling on Interstate 70 was damaged in the collapse, Washington County Emergency Management Director R. David Hayes said.

He was not sure if the crane actually struck the vehicle or if it was damaged while swerving to avoid the crane.

The vehicle made it to the rest area on I-70 eastbound where Frederick County emergency responders were handling it. Hayes was unsure of any injuries in the vehicle, and he was not sure the make and model.

A message left for Frederick County Division of Rescue Services was not immediately returned.

Construction equipment being used to move fallen crane

Washington County Emergency Management Director R. David Hayes said that a track hoe that was already at the construction site is being used to remove the crane boom, which stretches across all lanes of the highway and hangs past the guardrail in the median by four or five feet.

The collapse was in a construction area where crews are replacing two interstate bridges that dated to 1966. The bridge on the eastbound lanes had been removed and traffic was traveling on temporary lanes across Crystal Falls Drive.

The crane cab is situated on an embankment southeast of Interstate 70 and Crystal Falls Drive where the old bridge used to be.

The crane was lifting a piece of steel — possibly a piece of equipment — when it collapsed.

Crane operator 'definitely lucky'

The director of Washington County Emergency Management said the crane operator managed to jump from the cab of the vehicle as the boom was falling or just after it fell.

“I would say the operator is definitely lucky,” said R. David Hays.

It appears the operator, a male whose identity has not been released, only suffered a minor ankle injury, Hays said. EMS workers helped the operator from an embankment southeast of Crystal Falls Drive up to the interstate. the male was taken to Meritus Medical Center near Hagerstown.

One injury reported

The crane operator suffered minor injuries when the crane fell and is expected to be taken to the hospital, a Herald-Mail photographer said from the scene.

The crane is completely across the highway, blocking all lanes and the shoulders, according to the Maryland State Highway website.

Crystal Falls Drive now closed

Crystal Falls Drive is also closed near Interstate 70 as authorities manage the scene, a Washington County 911 dispatcher confirmed.

The Maryland State Highway Administration has crews headed to the scene it tweeted the closure.

This story will be updated.