Tractor-trailer careens 300 feet down embankment after crash; 2 flown to hospitals

GREENSBURG, Pa. — Medical helicopters were called Tuesday to the scene of a crash along Route 119 and Route 22 in Westmoreland County.

Pennsylvania State Police said a woman driving an SUV and a man driving a tractor-trailer were flown to hospitals after their vehicles collided shortly before 6:30 p.m. in Salem Township.

Investigators said the tractor-trailer went through a red light, hitting the SUV as it was making a left turn on a green arrow.

The truck ended up in a creek bed about 300 feet down an embankment.

“We had to cut our way down with a chainsaw and remove some brush with machetes,” Forbes Road Volunteer Fire Chief Bob Rosatti told Channel 11′s news exchange partners at TribLIVE.

Both drivers had to be pulled from their vehicles, police said.

The road was closed in both directions for hours. It didn’t completely reopen until about 4 a.m. Wednesday.

Here is a map showing the crash location:

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