State Route 111 coming down Cagle Mountain was blocked for about three hours yesterday afternoon while rescue crews worked to extricate two men trapped in a wrecked tractor trailer.

According to the Dunlap News, the driver of the rig lost control while negotiating a curve about 6 p.m. Thursday, taking out approximately 100 feet of guardrail before overturning against a tree. The wreck left the driver and a passenger trapped inside the crushed cab.

The Dunlap Fire Department, Sequatchie County Rescue Squad, Puckett EMS and Tennessee Highway Patrol all responded; dozens of volunteer firefighters worked feverishly amid frequent downpours to free the trapped men. Wrecker operators affixed cables to the cab to hold it in place, preventing it from sliding down the embankment during the rescue operation.

The roadway was blocked at the bottom of the mountain, so crews could work unimpeded.

Both men were eventually freed, about 9:30 p.m., and were transported by EMS to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga. The victims’ names and extent of their injuries are unknown. But both were conscious and speaking to rescue workers, according to Puckett EMS Director Winfred Smith.