Overturned semi on I-5 in Federal Way spills 40,000 pounds of chicken feathers

A semi rolled over on northbound Interstate 5 near Federal Way early Wednesday, blocking lanes and dumping chicken feathers across the roadway.

The crash occurred about 3:30 a.m. near South 320th Street.

The driver said he fell asleep at the wheel and lost control of the truck, hitting a guardrail and overturning the truck. The semi was carrying about 40,000 pounds of feathers from Foster Farms.

No one was injured.

As officials worked to clean up the feathers in all four lanes, traffic initially extended seven miles or so to Port of Tacoma Road. It quickly backed up more than 11 miles into downtown Tacoma.

Hours later, state Department of Transportation crews opened all but one lane.

All lanes reopened by 7:35 a.m., trooper Rick Johnson said.

This story was originally published May 23, 2018 at 7:29 AM with the headline "Overturned semi on I-5 in Federal Way spills 40,000 pounds of chicken feathers."