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2 crashes in 3 days take place on I-80 near Sidney

Over the course of three days, two semi trucks were involved in separate single-vehicle crashes on Interstate 80 near Sidney.

The Nebraska State Patrol led investigations into both crashes and said neither resulted in severe injuries.

Troopers were dispatched on Friday at 12:43 p.m. to milepost 57 on I-80 – between the interstate's two Sidney exits – for a report that a semi truck left the road and struck power lines. Because the incident occurred in a construction zone where east- and west-bound traffic shared a single side of the interstate, I-80 was temporarily closed.

According to the NSP, the driver was not injured.

Traffic was diverted through Sidney and down Illinois Street for approximately two hours while a crew from Wheat Belt Public Power District repaired the active power lines. The Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office and the Sidney Police Department assisted in directing traffic.

The interstate reopened at 3:11 p.m., and troopers cleared the scene an hour later.

A cause for the crash, the driver's identity and whether or not the driver was wearing a seat belt were not immediately known as of Monday morning.

On Sunday afternoon, the NSP was dispatched to milepost 69 on I-80, near the Sunol exit, for a crash that left a semi truck on its side.

The NSP reported the driver, from Indiana, suffered minor injuries and was treated on scene but not transported to a medical facility.

Troopers were alerted of the incident at 4:53 p.m. The vehicle was traveling westbound, also in a construction zone, at a crossover section where both sides of the interstate opened.

The driver was wearing a seat belt and the truck and trailer were totaled, according to the NSP.

A cause for the second crash was not immediately known.

According to the Nebraska Department of Roads, there were 23 fatalities on Nebraska roads in July. The total for the first seven months of the year is 135, a 5 percent increase from this time last year. As of Monday, there have been an additional 13 deaths in August.

 

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