Village of Hartland - Hartland police are seeking the driver of a vehicle that caused a chain reaction accident on Highway 16 Thursday morning that injured two people.

According to a police department press release:

The driver of a vehicle in the eastbound lane of Highway 16 slammed on the brakes over North Avenue forcing a 46-year-old Oconomowoc man to do the same. The action led to a chain reaction crash involving eight vehicles. The driver of the vehicle that initially hit the brakes continued to drive on.

The crash occurred in a construction zone where traffic was limited to one lane on the bridge over North Avenue.

Injured were a 41-year-old Watertown man and a 44-year-old Oconomowoc woman, who complained of injuries but were not taken to a hospital by ambulance.

A 48-year-old Reeseville woman suffered an unknown injury and was taken by ambulance to Oconomowoc Memorial Hospital by the Hartland Fire Department.
A 47-year-old Watertown man, a 69-year-old Oconomowoc man, a 65-years old Nashotah man and a 47-year-old Oconomowoc man were also involved in the crash but were not injured.

Two vehicles had to be towed from the scene and traffic was rerouted for about an hour before the highway was reopened.

The highway 83-16 overpass that borders the City of Delafield and Village of Hartland, closed for nearly a month because of construction work, has apparently been re-opened.

Motorist reported the overpass bridge was open early Friday afternoon although state highway officials had indicated the construction work was not expected to be completed until August 8.

State highway officials have not returned telephone calls seeking confirmation that the overpass is open for the traffic.

Motorists who usually travel north and south across the overpass were asked to take a circuitous detour through the Village of Hartland to Highway KE (West North Shore Drive) in order to rejoin Highway 83 south of the construction work.

The detour resulted in unusually heavy traffic through the village and an occassional traffic jam on Highways 16 and 83 and on downtown streets in the village.

The bridge deck overlay work is part of an $824,000 resurfacing of Highway 83 that extends 3.2 miles from Interstate 94 in Delafield south to near Cardinal Lane in Hartland.