Commuters respond to accident on I-94 that led to highway closure in Brookfield

A serious accident closed I-94 in Brookfield during the morning commute and Flight for Life was called to take a man to the hospital. Commuters looked for alternative routes to avoid the hours-long traffic jam.

TMJ4 News

At around 8 a.m. on Friday morning, Waukesha County's 911 emergency call center received the first reports of a serious accident.

Reporting center: “Several callers reported that the vehicle had hit the guardrail, overturned and crashed into the ditch in the ravine there.”

Mike Bartz was on his way to work Friday morning and had made it to Goerke's Corners Park & ​​Ride when he noticed something happening.

“Traffic came to a standstill right there. And a patrol car over here was holding up traffic,” Bartz said.

He said he realized the highway was no longer an option. The Waukesha County Sheriff's Office said the driver of the vehicle, a 44-year-old man, was ejected from the car and Flight for Life was called to the crash.

511 Wisconsin via SafetyVid.org

“No lane was clear. Everything was blocked off,” said Bartz.

The motorway was closed to allow the helicopter to land. The man was quickly taken to hospital, but rescue teams remained on site for hours.

Jay O'Neil had flown into Milwaukee on Friday morning and was trying to get home to Madison. As they headed west on I-94, he didn't know the highway was closed.

TMJ4 News

“We're tired. We should have been here yesterday,” O'Neil said.

They stopped just before the traffic jam to get coffee because they didn't know what the problem was. We helped them find another way through Waukesha.

“With your kind help, we will at least find another way to try to get past this,” O'Neil said.

We reached out to the sheriff's office for more details on the cause of the accident. They said everything is still under investigation.

It's time to pay attention to your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.

Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.

Report a typo or error // Send a news tip