The Toyota RAV4 on the shoulder of US Highway 160 after being involved in a three-vehicle accident east of Cortez. (Cameryn Cass/The Journal)

One person dies in crash in Durango, crash in Cortez leads to traffic delays for three hours

Two collisions Wednesday left one person dead on U.S. Highway 160 between Cortez and Durango and delayed traffic until at least 8 p.m

The first crash occurred near the Durango West II subdivision around 2:40 p.m. It involved an 18-wheel semi-truck and a Toyota Corolla, closing the highway for five hours, reports said The Durango Herald.

One person died at the scene and another person was flown to a hospital in critical condition.

The highway was closed at 3:05 p.m. and did not reopen until 8:00 p.m. Traffic was detoured to Hesperus via County Road 141 and Colorado Highway 140.

A few hours later, a dump truck, a Toyota RAV4 and a Ford F-150 pickup truck collided on the eastern edge of Cortez near the Montezuma County Fairgrounds around 5:09 p.m

Traffic was backed up Wednesday after a three-vehicle collision near the Montezuma County Fairgrounds on Oct. 23 at 6 p.m. (Cameryn Cass/The Journal)

The Cortez Fire Protection District cleans oil from the road on US Highway 160 near the Montezuma County Fairgrounds east of Cortez. (Cameryn Cass/The Journal)

No serious injuries were reported, but one person was taken to the hospital, Colorado State Patrol Trooper Sherri Mendez said.

The dump truck was leaking fuel and oil, lengthening the cleanup process and limiting travel to a single alternating lane.

The Cortez Fire Protection District poured an absorbent powder oil on the road and shoveled it away so the road wouldn't be slippery when it reopened.

Once the oil was cleaned, officers directed traffic and alternated lanes. Both lanes could only be reopened once the vehicles were removed from the scene of the accident.

After this second accident, the highway was not fully reopened until 8:29 p.m., Mendez said.

A third accident occurred near milepost 107.

The 911 call came at 7:18 p.m. and involved a vehicle and a deer, but no one was injured, Mendez said.

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