A multi-vehicle crash on eastbound Route 22 near mile marker 84 in Hanover Township sent two people to area hospitals by helicopter late at night, shutting down part of the highway near the Florence/Burgettstown exit. Emergency crews were dispatched at 10:34 p.m. to the scene, where at least two vehicles were involved.
According to WPXI, a Washington County 911 supervisor confirmed that two lanes of the eastbound side of Route 22 were blocked, along with one lane on the westbound side, as crews worked the crash scene. The supervisor told the outlet that the eastbound lanes were expected to remain closed for an extended period of time while the investigation and cleanup continued.
A Corridor With a History of Severe Wrecks
This isn't the first time a serious crash has forced an extended shutdown of this stretch of Route 22. In August 2025, a crash involving a tractor-trailer on westbound Route 22 near mile marker 1 in Hanover Township also left two people hospitalized, including one flown out by helicopter, and closed the corridor between PA Route 18 and the West Virginia state line for hours, as Hoodline reported at the time.
Even non-crash incidents have shut this stretch down before. Back in October 2018, a vehicle fire involving a truck hauling a crane temporarily closed Route 22 West in Hanover Township near the same Florence/Burgettstown exit, according to the Observer-Reporter. Together, the incidents point to a pattern of prolonged closures on this particular segment of the highway whenever something goes seriously wrong.
Route 22 Through Washington County
US Route 22 in Washington County operates as a principal four-lane divided arterial freeway, linking Pittsburgh's western suburbs and Robinson Township through Hanover Township to the West Virginia border near Weirton, per Wikipedia.
Part of a Recurring Pattern in Hanover Township
Hoodline has also covered a fatal late-night wreck on Steubenville Pike in Hanover Township, where a driver was ejected and was not wearing a seat belt. And earlier this month, Hoodline reported on another Washington County incident involving a person airlifted to a Pittsburgh hospital after being struck by a car, underscoring how often severe traffic incidents in this county end with a helicopter flight.
Pennsylvania recorded a record-low 1,047 traffic fatalities in 2025.
No further details on the crash's cause, the identities of those involved, or their current medical condition were available at the time of this report.
