Icy roads contributed to 10-vehicle pileup in Brooklyn Park

A motorist lost control on an icy bridge deck on a north metro highway in early Wednesday darkness and the spinout led to a 10-vehicle crash.

At least three people were taken to hospitals for treatment following the crash on Hwy. 169 near Interstate 94 in Brooklyn Park, the State Patrol said.

A driver going south on Hwy. 169 skidded while traveling on an overpass about 4:45 a.m., leading to the pileup. One person got out of their vehicle and was struck by another motorist, the patrol said.

That person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries, the patrol said.

Both directions of the highway were shut down for about four hours, reopening about 7:45 a.m. Traffic jammed in the area and was diverted to I-94 during the closure, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Camera images from the Minnesota Department of Transportation showed six vehicles blocking traffic lanes on both sides of Hwy. 169 near the bridge. Another camera showed three more cars in a crumpled heap that landed in the center median just north of the I-94/Hwy. 169 interchange.

A light snow had fallen overnight and temperatures dropped near freezing, creating slick conditions across the metro. A portion of Hwy. 610 near Hwy. 169 in Brooklyn Park and the southbound lanes of Hwy. 169 near Plymouth Avenue in Golden Valley were briefly closed about 6:30 a.m. after crashes there.

In Inver Grove Heights, a semitrailer truck and a van collided on eastbound Hwy. 55 near the Hwy. 52 interchange. The van landed in the median and the semitrailer skidded through the median and across the westbound lanes before it came to a stop. A rollover on northbound I-35W in Lakeville also tied up traffic Wednesday morning.

Scores of spinouts and crashes were reported during the first half of the morning rush hour but abated by 8:30 a.m. as road conditions improved.

Tim Harlow • 612-673-7768