Jackknifed semi truck leads to 7-hour Hood Canal Bridge shutdown

The Hood Canal Bridge reopened to traffic at about 10:30 p.m. Friday night after a lengthy closure because of damage caused by a jackknifed semi on the bridge.

Washington State Patrol Trooper Katherine Weatherwax said the closure ran from about 3:30 p.m to 10:30 p.m. Friday after the semi collided with a barrier on the bridge. There were no injuries reported, and the truck was the only vehicle involved, she said, noting that the incident was caused by the wind.

The seven-hour closure led to lengthy backups.

State Department of Transportation spokesman Mark Krulish said the truck damaged a section of a barrier along the roadway and did some damage to the bridge deck. Crews came from Shelton to make temporary repairs, and Krulish said at some point permanent work will need to be done to fix the damage.

After testing, the span reopened at about 10:30 p.m.

"We thank people for their patience," Krulish said. "Any time we have to close the Hood Canal Bridge for an incident like that, it's going to be an inconvenience, and we are fully aware of that and always work as quickly as we can to get the bridge back open to traffic."

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Hood Canal Bridge shutdown causes backups through North Kitsap