These Travelers Spent First Night of 2020 Stranded Inside Giant Tumbleweed Pile
A few unsuspecting travelers got the surprise of their lives (or at least the surprise of the decade) when their cars got tangled in a massive pile of tumbleweeds on New Year’s Eve.
As high winds along State Route 240 in eastern Washington started to blow a collection of tumbleweeds onto the road late Tuesday night, several cars and a semi-truck slowed to let them pass, according to Washington State Patrol Trooper Chris Thorson.
Thorson wrote on Twitter that the winds were reaching nearly 50 miles per hour at the time approximately 20 miles west of Richmond, Washington.
As the weather continued to howl, it soon became clear that the tumbleweeds weren’t going anywhere.
Basically…. cars (and one semi truck) drive in and then slow down due to low visibility on the roadway, then eventually stop. Then you get covered in tumbleweeds because of high winds nearing 50 mph.
— Trooper C. Thorson (@wspd3pio) January 1, 2020
They quickly started to collect on the highway, forcing passing vehicles to come to a halt.
TUMBLEGEDDON: This is what the tumbleweeds looked like on SR 240 north of Richland, Washington, just moments before transportation officials shut down the highway for hours on New Year’s Eve. ?: Patrick Antonson pic.twitter.com/R4rLVSAsUG
— KAPP-KVEW (@KAPPKVEW) January 1, 2020
Brambles soon became so thick that the weeds began to completely surround drivers waiting in cars.
According to Thorson, the pile even reached between 20 and 30 feet in certain places.
We’re still working on clearing the roadway with @WSDOT_East . We are unsure when the roadway will be opened. Tumbleweeds are piled 20-30 feet in places. S.C. pic.twitter.com/zFbA3luscg
— Trooper C. Thorson (@wspd3pio) January 1, 2020
Authorities closed the highway as crews from the Washington State Department of Transportation arrived and began working to free the vehicles that were already trapped, determined to help travelers get home safely.
“People were still stuck at midnight and rung in the new year trapped under the weeds,” Thorson said, according to The Associated Press.
The bizarre incident lasted about 10 hours, according to Thorson and representatives from WSDOT, who wrote on Twitter that crews worked through the night to reopen the highway.
A pretty incredible sight from SR 240 where tumbleweed closed he road for 10hours last night. Big thanks to our crews who worked through the night to clear roadway. https://t.co/23RaWImGCH
— WSDOT East (@WSDOT_East) January 1, 2020
The WSDOT tweet called the clean-up “a pretty incredible sight” as crews used snowplows to clear the debris from the highway.
As daylight broke, workers discovered a final vehicle whose owners appeared to have abandoned it on the road as the tumbleweeds piled high.
“Luckily no one was in it,” Thorson said, sharing a video of the crews pulling tumbleweeds off the car.
He reported that workers were able to reopen the road around 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday, though WSDOT issued a warning for drivers passing through the area.
Our crews are continuing to keep watch on SR 240 and the tumbleweed impacts there. They will be patrolling through this evening to help keep the road open to traffic. Please take care if you choose to travel through this area as winds continue to move the tumbleweeds around. pic.twitter.com/d6dlQPvESL
— WSDOT East (@WSDOT_East) January 1, 2020
No injuries have been reported as a result of the tumbleweed pileup, or #tumblegeddon, as Thorson called it.
However, this is one New Year’s Eve those travelers won’t soon forget.
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