Internashonal
‘Mass casualty incident’ closes I-70 near Ohio 310 in Licking County
Both directions of Interstate 70 are closed in Licking County near the State Route 310 interchange after a “mass casualty incident.”
Around 8:45 a.m. Tuesday, dozens of emergency personnel from across Licking County and eastern Franklin County were dispatched to the area on a report of a crash. Scanner traffic indicated that a tractor-trailer struck a commercial bus carrying dozens of passengers.
It was not immediately able to be confirmed what types of vehicles were involved or if other vehicles were involved aside from the tractor-trailer and bus.
Ohio Department of Transportation cameras from the area show smoke coming from the crash site.
Patients have been transported by squad to at least five area hospitals: Licking Memorial Hospital, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center, OhioHealth Pickerington Methodist hospital and Mount Carmel East hospital. It was not immediately known how many people were injured or what their conditions were.
Multiple medical helicopters have also been dispatched to the scene.
The bus involved in the crash appears to be from Pioneer Trails, a family-owned bus business based in Millersburg in Holmes County. When asked by The Dispatch on Tuesday if a bus from the company was involved in the crash, an employee said it wasn’t their department and hung up on a reporter.
Dispatchers have classified the incident as a “mass casualty incident, level 3,” which indicates 10 or more people may have been injured and there will be a need for paramedics, fire crews and hospital readiness across the region. Casualty does not necessarily mean fatalities in the way it is used by dispatchers.
The highway is closed in both directions as crews continue to assess the situation.
Additional details were not immediately available.
@bethany_bruner
