Multiple motor vehicle accidents snarl traffic in Glacier National Park

Multiple motor vehicle accidents in Glacier National Park late Wednesday afternoon led to congestion and the closure of Going-to-the-Sun Road to traffic, officials said.  

Two separate accidents after 3 p.m., June 26 slowed traffic at the west park entrance and at The Loop, the sole switchback on the western side of the Sun Road, according to officials.  

The accident halfway between The Loop and the west tunnel occurred when a vehicle swerved to miss another vehicle that crossed over the yellow line. The evasive maneuver caused the swerving vehicle to hit a rock outcropping, leaving it disabled. 

Around the same time, two vehicles collided while merging from two lanes at the park's west side entrance.   

No injuries occurred in either accident. 

At around 5:40 p.m., park dispatch received reports of a third accident and a vehicle on fire about two miles east of the Apgar Campground turn off. A 70-year-old man from Texas fell asleep and drove off the road on the Lake McDonald side while driving west. The car hit a tree before catching on fire, officials said.

The driver and a 65-year-old female passenger escaped the vehicle while other motorists stopped to assist. An ambulance team later took the woman to Logan Health in Whitefish to determine the extent of her injuries, according to officials. Though an A.L.E.R.T. air ambulance responded, the 65-year-old opted to use ground transportation. 

The fire left a roughly 20-by 20-yard burn scar on the lake side of the road, with flames at one point reaching from the base of trees to the crown, officials said. Martin City and Hungry Horse fire departments extinguished the fire.

The car was destroyed.

The wreck and subsequent fire impeded traffic on the Sun Road for about three hours.