GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The morning drive was generally messy already, but around 6:30 a backup began on eastbound I-196
Officers initially had trouble getting to the scene due to backed up traffic. They decided to close both lanes of the expressway, but when an officer got on scene, one lane was available for traffic to slowly move through, so the highway was kept open.
Reports at first said the crash was a jack-knife semi, and a truck was blocking the left lane. But after officers arrived, the truck left, leaving the two cars that were actually involved in the crash.
Around Kent and Ottawa Counties, there were the usual traction problems, especially with the slushy conditions. On eastbound I-96 near the East Beltline, one car sat in the ditch on the right and another one was stranded on the left. Delays getting tow trucks on the scene left officers and drivers waiting for quite a while.
In Ottawa County just before 8 a.m., a school bus was involved in a crash with two other cars. One of the drivers in a car was injured, but none of the students on the bus was hurt.
Photo: Courtesy Abigayle Sloan
