Seattle man cited for careless driving in wreck that closed Seward Highway for hours

A Seattle man has been cited for careless driving that caused the multi-vehicle crash Sunday on the Seward Highway that left one person severely injured and brought traffic to a standstill for over seven hours.

The crash happened around 12:30 p.m. when a northbound SUV swerved into the southbound lane of the highway at Mile 109, said Anchorage Police Department spokesman M.J. Thim.

The crash was near a popular turnout where people collect drinking water from a pipe.

"The vehicle was hit head-on; that caused a chain reaction accident involving multiple injuries," he said.

A preliminary investigation found the northbound car, a Ford Expedition, didn't brake as it approached a Chevrolet SUV with four occupants stopped behind a Toyota 4Runner that was turning into a pullout on the west side of the Seward Highway, police said in a Monday statement.

There was no turning lane where the accident happened, Thim said.

"The Ford Expedition swerved to avoid a collision and struck the (rear) driver's side of the (Chevy) SUV," police said. "The Ford Expedition then went into oncoming southbound traffic and struck head-on a 2014 red Toyota Tundra with four people inside that was pulling a boat on a trailer."

The series of crashes continued as the Toyota veered off the highway and hit a Dodge pickup stopped at the Mile 109 pullout, police said. The Dodge truck had two people inside, they said.

The driver of the Ford Expedition and everyone inside the Toyota Tundra were taken to hospitals. A single passenger in the Tundra suffered life-threatening injuries; all others had less severe injuries, police said.

Police identified the driver of the Expedition as Peter Jouflas, who was cited for careless driving. Thim said Jouflas is from Seattle, but he could not provide the driver's age.

Officers said they found no indication of alcohol or drug use, but the cause of the crash remains under investigation.

The investigation and cleanup caused long delays for drivers through the afternoon and into evening. At 7 p.m. Sunday, police announced crews had finished clearing the scene and the road was open in both directions, though slowdowns continued.

Thim said officers arrived on the scene five minutes after the crash.

Police included a reminder in the Monday statement asking drivers to focus on the road when passing the scene of an accident. Thim said drivers stopped to take pictures of the accident and contributed to the slow recovery of traffic flow.

The crash happened during a busy weekend for the only stretch of road that links Anchorage with the Kenai Peninsula, on a day when thousands of people traveled to Girdwood for the annual Forest Fair.

It was at least the second time in 10 days that a crash led to hours-long delays on the Seward Highway. A June 30 two-vehicle wreck south of Girdwood closed the highway in both directions for about three hours.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Peter Jouflas was cited for reckless driving. He was actually cited for careless driving.