Hours after crash, 'nightmare' on Eastex Fwy comes to end
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Six hours after an accident littered the highway with lumber, the northbound lanes of the Eastex Freeway near Kingwood Drive has reopened.
TxDOT says a truck lost part of its load around 4:30 p.m., spilling thousands of pieces of wood.
Reporter Nick Natario said it took three hours on Thursday evening to get from the Texas Medical Center to the scene of the accident.
WATCH: 'Nightmare' situation remains on Eastex Freeway
The wood didn't just fall on the freeway, but went crashing into several cars.
SkyEye13 flew above the scene as damaged vehicles were towed away, some showing the aftermath of a scary roadway encounter, with wood pieces sticking through the windshield.
Christopher Scribner said he was traveling northbound when he saw a truck swerve and lose the lumber on its back end.
"I hit the wood," Scribner said. "My car actually rolled over once, and landed back on four wheels, thankfully. I just opened my eyes at that point and saw the windshield was completely shattered and my side airbags were deployed."
Luckily, he wasn't hurt. Scribner said he saw a couple people taken by ambulance.
When he got out of his car, Scribner couldn't believe what the freeway looked like.
"The wood was everywhere," Scribner said. "When I got out, there were a couple of people who weren't involved in the accident, but they got out and they were trying to clear the wood."
We are not sure how the lumber became loose.
TxDOT crews will continue working through the night to clear the scene, but there is no telling just how long that may take.
