North Dakota Highway Patrol responds to several crashes on I-94

Masaki Ova, The Jamestown Sun, N.D.
·2 min read
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Mar. 10—JAMESTOWN — Several crashes were reported Thursday, March 10, on Interstate 94 in Stutsman and Barnes counties, according to Sgt. Evan Savageau with the North Dakota Highway Patrol.

Savageau said the patrol responded to nine accidents from about 1 to 10:30 p.m. Thursday on I-94 in Stutsman and Barnes counties.

"Our Valley City guys wound up covering out in Tower City and east of there a little ways too, so I know they were really busy out in that area as well," he said.

He said the patrol mainly responded to single-vehicle accidents where motorists lost control of the vehicle on icy roads and went into the ditch or the median. He said the vehicles either overturned or caused enough damage that the patrol needed to generate crash reports.

"Mainly our biggest issue yesterday and last night was people were driving too fast for the conditions that were out on the roadway," he said.

The patrol also responded to some jackknifed semitrailers that made travel more difficult if a lane of I-94 was blocked.

Savageau said the patrol didn't have many issues on secondary highways such as N.D. Highway 1 or N.D. Highway 281.

"I know a little further south, like say in LaMoure County, they had some issues further south that one of our troopers responded to as well," he said.

He said one injury was reported from a single-vehicle rollover on I-94 near Medina, and the female driver was transported to Jamestown Regional Medical Center for treatment.

The cause of the accidents was icy highways or motorists following vehicles too closely.

"(They) weren't leaving enough space so if something happened ahead of them they had to hit the brakes and were following too close and ended up having to go in the ditch or the median," he said.

Motorists who are traveling this weekend will want to check the road conditions on the North Dakota travel map and stay informed about the weather, Savageau said. The National Weather Service in Bismarck issued a blizzard warning Friday morning from midnight through 4 p.m. Sunday for Burleigh, Dickey, Foster, Kidder, LaMoure, Logan, McIntosh, McLean, Sheridan, Stutsman and Wells counties.