WHEN WE HEADED out for Fargo late Thursday morning northbound on Interstate 35, I never expected this to be anything but a long, five-hour road trip.
But we were only a half hour into our drive when we ran into rain and this scene along Interstate 35W near County Road 42 in Burnsville.
This bus ran off Interstate 35W in Burnsville Thursday morning.
Little did my husband, son and I know this bus crash would be just the first of three notable accidents that would occur along our route.
Thursday evening while traveling on a Fargo city street, we were caught in the middle of this scene in which a car rear-ended a bus.
And then the second accident involving a bus, on a Fargo city street.
Emergency personnel speak to the driver of the car, still inside the car, which rear-ended the bus.
But it got worse, way worse.
Friday afternoon, driving on Interstate 94 east of Moorhead around 4:30 p.m. we spotted dense black smoke in the distance.
“Looks like someone burning tires,” my husband said and we thought nothing more of it.
That is until traffic began to merge from the left lane into the right as the four-lane narrowed to two lanes in a bridge construction zone about one mile ahead. Traffic ground to a near-halt.
And then we realized, when the vehicles in the left lane began turning off the eastbound lanes onto a maintenance turn-around and driving back west that the smoke was the result of an accident on the interstate.
We followed the leader back west (westbound traffic was not leaving the accident site) and exited the interstate at the Sabin exit, pulling off a county road to figure out an alternative route.
It was then, while my husband and son were consulting maps, that I stepped from the van and shot this distant scene of smoke from a fiery head-on crash.
We pulled off Clay County Road 79, which runs along Interstate 94, to plot an alternative route. This was the scene unfolding before us as a result of the fiery head-on crash.
According to The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead, an eastbound car driven by Roberta Haspel, 58, of Barnesville crossed into the westbound lane in a construction zone and collided head-on with a semi driven by Gary Sather, 65, of Bismarck. The semi went into the median and caught fire.
Haspel reportedly was airlifted from the scene and hospitalized in critical condition. The truck driver was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
It was an absolute relief to hear that no one was killed in this fiery crash.
I mean if you had seen the smoke…
As we drove on the Clay County Road 11 overpass over Interstate 94, I shot this photo. The interstate curves to the south.
Another shot from the Clay County Road 11 overpass as we followed an alternative route to Sabin. The westbound lanes of I-94 were also shut down and traffic rerouted off the interstate. Here you see eastbound traffic, which was reportedly backed up for seven miles all the way to Moorhead.
© Copyright 2012 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
frightening out there.. it always amazes me that there are not more accidents .. the speeds people are all travelling at! c
I don’t know that speed was a factor in this accident. But I agree. Many drivers are driving 85 mph on the interstate. I94 was inundated with Minnesota State troopers on Thursday. I bet we saw a dozen. On the way back home, the only highway patrol we spotted were heading to the accident scene near Moorhead.
It’s amazing no one was killed in that last crash. Head-on accidents don’t have many survivors. It’s hard to believe you drove past so many accidents in one (relatively) short trip. What was going on that day? xx
Yes, this trip to Fargo, which is about 250 miles one-way, was an eventful one for us on the road. We drove a total of 650 miles. Fortunately we arrived “after the fact” at all these accidents and were at least a mile away from the most serious one.
Wow – so not good. I seriously think that God has an angel on permanent “protect Gretchen in her car” duty…
Have you had some close calls? I typically pray for safe travel for us when we are on the road. But for some reason, this time I prayed extra hard before we left. Now I know why. God most definitely showed me that he hears prayers, like I didn’t know that. But sometimes I take Him too much for granted and am not as grateful as I should be.
Don’t we all? I’ve had some close calls over the years, yes – but never been in an actual accident, thankfully.
Wow! The truck driver, Gary, is my brother in law. I’m glad he’s safe and I hope the woman who caused the accident is. That truck represents my bro in law’s livelihood. Crazy drivers. What is worth that kind of a hurry?
Robb, I have not read any final or official report on the accident so it is premature for anyone to assume that the crash was the result of crazy driving or anyone being in a hurry.
That said, I am thankful your brother-in-law is alright.
As for Roberta, the driver of the car, I just checked her CaringBridge website. According to that, she suffered many broken bones including two broken legs and a broken left arm and a fracture in her lower spine. She will require many surgeries to reconstruct her leg bones and left arm. She has apparently not yet “woken up,” but family is confident she knows they are there. She remains hospitalized in Fargo in “guarded condition” as of a few days ago.
I think it would be wise for all of us to hold Roberta and her family in our prayers for healing and strength and patience.
Incidentally, I learned, while searching online, that Roberta works at North Dakota State University. My family had just left NDSU following orientation and registration there for our youngest son when we came within a mile of the crash scene. My heart also goes out to the entire NDSU community.