Dozens of Olmsted County crashes Saturday afternoon into Sunday morning

Ice and snow lead to multiple crashes over the holiday weekend

The weather caused some slick roads over the weekend, causing hectic holiday travel across Minnesota. Leading to the Minnesota State Patrol responding to more than 500 crashes and spinouts.

(ABC 6 News) – UPDATE: Rochester police received 35 reports of car crashes/accidents between Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, after icy rain and sleet caused slick travel conditions.

The Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office responded to 13 crashes between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, two of which resulted in minor injuries, according to Capt. Tim Parkin.

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(ABC 6 News) – The weather caused some slick roads over the weekend, causing hectic holiday travel across Minnesota. Which lead to the Minnesota State Patrol responding to more than 500 crashes and spinouts.

Even those working the plows and fire engines had trouble staying on the road. Saturday night, a plow truck slid off the road and into a ditch in southwest Rochester. When the fire department responded, their truck ended up off the road as well. The plow crashed into a fire hydrant which caused a hole in the diesel tank. Leaking almost 40 gallons of fuel into the storm drain.

Related: RPU plow truck slides off road and leaks fuel after being punctured Saturday evening

“RFD responded. The plow truck was up a little bit of a hill, we weren’t getting traction on the way to the call. We decided to stay at the bottom of the hill. Put the truck in park and it just started sliding. We slid down and just slid into the ditch. There are no injuries and very minor damage done to the vehicle,” said Brady Nelson, a Firefighter with the Rochester Fire Department.

While the extent of these damages is still being looked at, both firefighters and the plow driver avoided any serious injuries.

Meanwhile, there were a number of crashes in our area over the weekend.

The first happened on I-90 outside of Albert Lea. According to State Patrol, a truck was heading west when it lost control on the ice. It then headed into the ditch and rolled. Two people from South Dakota were injured and taken to the hospital. They are expected to recover.

A pick-up truck was also involved in a rollover incident on Highway 65 on Saturday. Like the other crashes, the truck lost control on the ice before heading into the ditch and rolling. One Albert Lea resident, 51-year-old Jose Rosas was hurt but is expected to recover.

Related: Drivers warned to be safe ahead of NYE holiday weekend

“The weather snuck up on us so instantly the roads were just icy. MnDOT did get out and treat the roadways. It’s important people allow enough time to get where they’re going safely. Just extra time is important,” said Sgt. Troy Christianson with the Minnesota State Patrol.

As Sgt. Christianson said these crashes and incidents serve as an important reminder to take it slow as the weather and roads get worse. In severe weather, only travel if you need to.