Highway 62 reopening following deadly crash near MSP Airport
MINNEAPOLIS -- A fatal crash closed both directions of Highway 62 near Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport for hours Monday morning.
As of noon, both directions of Highway 62 between 28th and 34th Avenues are back open. The eastbound lanes reopened later in the morning.
The Minnesota State Patrol said the crash was fatal. A truck with a trailer was heading east on Highway 62 when it entered the ditch and hit the underside of the 34th Avenue bridge, the patrol said. It happened just before 3:30 a.m.
Later Monday morning, authorities updated that the victim, a passenger in the truck, was 21-year-old Preston Rhyn Haley from Como, Colorado. The driver -- 34-year-old Brian Dale Cravey from Wills Point, Texas -- was said to have life-threatening injuries. Fire crews reported he was in critical condition when he was taken to the hospital.
Authorities say it appears alcohol may have been a factor in the crash.
The State Patrol is investigating a fatal crash eastbound Highway 62 at 34th Avenue in the city of Minneapolis. Info will be posted at https://t.co/vIRHT9jheP
— State Patrol PIO (@MSPPIO) March 27, 2023
A secondary crash involved a state patrol squad car and Minneapolis Fire Department truck, the patrol said.
The 34th Ave bridge over highway 62 East is littered with debris - below a truck with a trailer crashed with its flatbed landing up the hill. In the distance on 62 West a @mnstate trooper vehicle has heavy front end damage @WCCO pic.twitter.com/Z99neoK7Um
— Pauleen Le (@PauleenLe) March 27, 2023
The patrol said both vehicles' emergency lights were activated.
NEW VIDEO: It appears a Minneapolis Fire rig and a State Patrol squad collided while responding to a deadly crash early this morning on Hwy 62. Both had emergency lights activated at the time.@wcco is working to learn more about both crashes.
— Guy Still (@mplstvguy) March 27, 2023
The road remains closed. pic.twitter.com/vHFEBsKZhk
"While one of our fire ladder trucks were responding and attempting to turn around at a turnabout for emergency vehicles, they were in an accident with a State Trooper that was also responding to the emergency," the city's fire department reported.
No firefighters were hurt in the incident. The trooper was said to have been injured in the crash.
Traffic was being diverted off of the highway during the morning rush hour.