March snow storm makes driving difficult in Lake County
<p>One truck sat idle while plows raced past up Jette Hill, clearing the road for other trucks. Despite wearing chains on his tires, this driver needed a tow from the shoulder off U.S. 93 </p>
Sunshine turned to two-to-three inches of snow through Wednesday night and Thursday morning rending traffic quagmired in Polson.
Montana Highway Patrol stopped at least 15 semi-trucks at the bottom of Jette Hill north of Polson after three slid off of and into the middle of the road.
Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Chad Anderson said at least 12 separate car accidents occurred between Jette Hill and the intersection of U.S. 93 and M.T. 35.
After three trucks slid off the road heading up Jette Hill, Anderson shut the road down, the first time he’s done so in seven years on patrol.
“I don’t mind taking the blame,” Anderson said. “I wasn’t going to let other trucks up the hill and become more of a problem.”
One of the trucks on the hill, an 18-chain-wheeled FedEx truck, slid onto the shoulder around 7:15 a.m.
About two hours later, troopers determined the driver would need to be towed off the shoulder.
Anderson said the first accident call came in around 7 a.m., when a truck slide across the road blocking both lanes of traffic south of town.
Aside from Montana Highway Patrol, Polson Fire and Police departments responded to calls around town, while Department of Transportation crews from Ronan and Hot Springs joined to clear roads and direct traffic.
Around 10 a.m., troopers began allowing trucks back up Jette Hill.