E18 highway closed in both directions after truck overturns

The E18 highway near Sandefjord has been closed in both directions after a truck overturned, Norwegian police report. The road is expected to remain shut for an extended period.

According to Dagbladet, the accident occurred in the northbound lane just south of Fokserød, near the Torp exit. The trailer, traveling from the north, failed to navigate a right turn and crashed through both central barriers before overturning into the oncoming lane, operations manager Ståle Fuglaas of the Southeast Police District told Tønsbergs Blad.

“In the right turn south of the Torp exit, the driver, for unknown reasons, lost control in the curve, drove down both guardrails between the lanes, ended up in the oncoming traffic lane, and overturned,” Fuglaas said. “It’s pure luck no cars were coming the other way at 110 km/h. This could have been very serious.”

The driver was taken to Tønsberg Hospital for treatment. Police confirmed the closure at 8:29 PM local time, with the accident investigation commission en route to examine the vehicle. Authorities are conducting on-site investigations.

No further details on the cause of the accident or the driver’s condition have been released.