VERO BEACH − A two-vehicle crash during a round of severe weather led to one person hospitalized and the hours-long closure of the Alma Lee Loy Bridge, police and fire officials said.

The crash was just before 1:30 p.m. as storms with heavy rain were moving into the area and happened in the single westbound lane of the 17th Street bridge that has been undergoing construction since 2023.

“During the rain we had a head-on collision on the bridge,” said Assistant Fire Chief Richard Marini.

The driver of a Volvo sport utility vehicle was taken by ambulance to HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital in Fort Pierce.

Marini said she would have been taken by helicopter, but was not because of the weather conditions.

Heavy rain pummeled parts of Vero Beach, especially beachside, where an area of Ocean Drive was under water near Humiston Beach Park.

She was the only person injured in the crash and was conscious when first met by fire rescue crews, Marini said.

The bridge was closed and reopened just after 4:15 p.m. following a Vero Beach police investigation and the removal of the vehicles and debris.

The SUV struck a westbound lawn service pickup truck hauling a utility trailer while traveling east in the westbound lane, said police spokesperson Officer Kelsea Callahan.

Callahan said detectives would speak with the woman at the hospital to determine the cause, but she said no medical episode or impairment were considered factors in the crash.

Construction in the area reduced lanes of travel over the bridge from what were four lanes with a divider between east and westbound travel to two single east and westbound lanes.

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Corey Arwood is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow @coreyarwood on X, email corey.arwood@tcpalm.com or call 772-978-2246.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: SUV, lawn truck crash on Alma Lee Loy Bridge; 1 injured