Westbound 401 closed near Chatham following two transport truck collisions

Provincial police in Chatham have closed down a section of Highway 401 near Victoria Road following two collisions involving two transport trucks.

OPP say they received a call around 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday about a transport truck stuck in a ditch.

“The transport truck lost control as it was travelling westbound on the 401 in a construction zone, and ended up entering into the north ditch,” said OPP Const. Jay Denoror.

“As the vehicle landed into the ditch, the box that was being carried separated from the truck itself,” he said.

Denoror adds that a transport truck driver was transported to hospital with minor injuries, while careless driving charges are pending.

Shortly after that collision, OPP arrived on scene to detour vehicles around the transport truck.

“A transport truck had failed to slow down as the vehicles ahead were coming to a halt, which resulted in the truck hitting a vehicle in front of it,” Denoror says.

“The vehicle was badly damaged and the driver was transported to hospital with minor injuries. Careless driving charges are pending against a transport truck driver, and we could possibly see added charges laid as well,” he says.

Denoror adds he couldn’t give an exact time as to when the 401 would reopen at Victoria Road, but expects it to take another two to three hours for crews to clear both collisions.