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Traffic was a little more jammed than usual on Tuesday, July 19, following a chain-reaction accident near the Arboretum.
According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, State Troopers were dispatched to milepost 224 on U.S. Hwy. 60 to the scene of an injury collision involving two semi-trucks and three other vehicles blocking both directions of the highway.
DPS Trooper Kameron Lee, who is the public information officer, said that a 1999 Kenworth gravel truck driven by Mike Weinert, 62, Tucons, struck the rear of a 2016 GMC Acadia driven by John Achilles, 55, of Gilbert. Achilles was stopped for traffic. The GMC was pushed out of the way and the Kenworth continued into the rear of a 2013 tanker truck driven by Micheal Gingrich, 63, of Tucson, which was also stopped for traffic. The impact pushed the tanker truck into the back of a fourth vehicle driven by Florian Herrle, 29, of Arvada, Colorado. Troopers believe Herrle’s vehicle may have been a test vehicle of some sort and they were unable to determine the make and model. Herrle’s vehicle in turn was pushed forward striking a black Audi driven by Richard P. Wood, 71, of Broomfield, Colorado. Both the GMC Acadia and the unknown make/model vehicles ended up in the westbound lanes.
Three people were transported to Valley area hospitals where they were admitted for injuries sustained in the accident. Mike Weinert was taken to Scottsdale Osborn Hospital by helicopter. John Achilles and his passenger, Cindy Achilles, were also air lifted to Scottsdale Osborn Hospital for injuries.
The accident remains under investigation.
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