Davis Law Group, P.S.

Multiple-car crashes shut northbound I-5

The northbound lanes of Interstate 5 in Mount Vernon were shut down Nov. 24 Friday after a multiple vehicle collision. The massive wreck, which involved 14 to 17 vehicles, happened about 11:30 a.m. at the Skagit River Bridge, Washington State Patrol Trooper Keith Leary said. One person suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital, he said.

It appeared that the accidents began as traffic slowed crossing the bridge. Leary said it seems that one driver waited too long to stop and ran into the vehicle in front.
"That kind of caused the chain reaction," Leary said. There were four or five accidents involving multiple vehicles, not just one continuous crash, he said.

Traffic investigators will need time to determine exactly what caused the various accidents, but Leary said likely factors were drivers following too closely and being inattentive.