A 45-foot semitruck headed toward Steamboat Springs with a load of large rocks crashed near the base of Rabbit Ears Pass late Thursday afternoon, closing U.S. Highway 40 in both directions.

The crash occurred at about 4 p.m. and the highway was reopened to alternating lanes of traffic around 5:30 p.m.

The truck was carrying “a bunch of landscaping boulders” that were scattered across both lanes of the highway late in the afternoon at milepost 141, said Colorado State Patrol Public Information Officer Sergeant Ivan Alvarado.

The crash resulted in “extensive road damage” as well as damage to a guardrail, Alvarado said. The Colorado Department of Transportation utilized a front loader to clear the boulders. 

Officers on scene said witnesses observed the semitruck losing its brakes and sliding into a ditch on the side of the road.

The truck did catch on fire and the driver suffered minor injuries, but “nothing life-threatening,” Alvarado said.

Editor’s note: This is a developing story and will be updated as more information is made available.