'Smoke Going All Over The Place': Out-Of-Control Semi Dodges Vehicles, Injuries

TAYLORS FALLS, Minn. (WCCO) -- It's a scenic border town, but to get to Taylors Falls from Wisconsin requires a sharp descent --the locals know it well.

"I haul a big trailer and that hill is pretty steep so you gotta watch yourself. If you had a big load and the brakes went out, you're toast," Steve from Taylors Falls said.

And that's exactly what happened late Monday morning.

A semi crossed an intersection as people pumped gas, and another semi comes flying down the hill crashing into a smokey stop.

Troopers say the truck flipped one and half times. Witnesses say the axle slammed right into a traffic pole.

One of those witnesses was cutting hair at the time. Roger's Barber Shop is just a stone's throw away.

"The truck was weining at full throttle and we thought, 'Oh my gosh. Get to that driver.' That's our first instinct. Smoke going all over the place," Roger Velasco said.

But the driver crawled out on his own with minor injuries and everyone at the scene was completely safe.

"Thank God nobody's injured. I'm just grateful he missed those other vehicles in that intersection," Roger's wife, Peggy Lee said.

The driver says his brakes went out as he descended the hill, trying to dodge traffic and hang a right to stop. That driver was the only one who was injured, and his injuries are minor.

"Imagine though how awesome the driver was. He took in his hands to miss everybody that was in his way," Lee added.

Troopers say they are trying to figure out exactly how and why this happened.

But what is clear, is that the ending could have been much worse.