Death toll rises to 6 in wake of I-81 snow squall pileup in Pa., police say
Authorities continue to investigate the cause of Monday morning's massive pileup that occurred amid white-out conditions on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County.
Published Mar 30, 2022 3:34 PM EDT
|
Updated Apr 1, 2022 11:03 AM EDT
Copied
The number of people killed in Monday morning's 80-vehicle chain-reaction crash on an eastern Pennsylvania highway has risen to six, authorities said Wednesday, as they continue to investigate how whiteout-conditions from a passing snow squall may have contributed to the pileup.
The fiery crash, which also sent 24 people to area hospitals, was so extensive that cleanup crews and police didn't fully reopen Interstate 81 northbound until shortly after midnight, Wednesday -- nearly two days later. The crash occurred in Foster Township in Schuylkill County, about 90 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
It was "snow and fog mixed together, and it brought the visibility down to zero," driver Mike Moye said immediately after he crashed his vehicle.
Pennsylvania State Police initially confirmed Monday that three people had died in the massive crash but later updated the number of victims Wednesday morning. The victims' identities have not yet been released.
Dramatic video recorded by Moye, who was able to get out of his car and wait off to the side of the road, showed a truck that was on fire surrounded by other vehicles that were crushed during the crash, and vehicle after vehicle plowing into each other.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This video contains graphic language as well as images that some may find disturbing:
People who had fled their vehicles could be seen on the side of the road and could be heard in Moye’s video screaming in horror as vehicles continued to plow into one another.
In all, 80 vehicles were involved, including 39 tractor-trailers and other commercial vehicles and 41 passenger vehicles, according to state police.
Other drivers involved in the accident also described the treacherous driving conditions that preceded the crash.
“Couldn’t even see 3 feet in front of me,” one driver, Lillie Weaver, told WNEP-TV. "Then I knew I was getting close to an exit, so I went over into the right lane and by then my car had slid completely over into the bank and there was no visibility. I could only hear cars around me hitting each other."
Another driver, Bob Kenney, said that all of a sudden it was mayhem: "It was just noise -- car hitting car, truck, explosion. Something blew up back there with that big fire. It was just terrible, unbelievable."
"All of a sudden, all I saw was a wall of trucks sideways," Candy Gerken told WNEP.
Fire on Interstate 81 after pileup occurred during snowy conditions. (Mike Moye)
Those who escaped their vehicles from the pileup were met with blustery cold conditions, with AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures of 14 degrees F at Fort Indiantown Gap -- the closest reporting station to the crash site, near the time the incident occurred. AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures continued to plummet as the day progressed, getting as cold as 5 degrees F at 2:30 p.m. local time.
Snow showers first appeared in parts of Pennsylvania early Monday morning. At around 10:20 a.m., shortly before the I-81 crash, multiple accidents were reported on Route 61 in Shamokin Township, about 15 miles west of I-81. The crash caused power lines to go down across the road and shut down the route in both directions, according to Northumberland County Fire Wire. Spotty icy conditions were reported in the area at the time of the crash.
Less than a half-hour later, snow squall conditions could be seen on Interstate 88 at exit 119 in Butler Township, Pennsylvania, via PennDOT traffic cameras. Roads were quickly covered in snow while white-out conditions took over the area, creating dangerous driving conditions.
A drone shot of the 80-vehicle chain-reaction crash along Interstate 81 northbound in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, that killed six people and injured more than 20 on Monday, March 28, 2022. (Photo/Mike Nester)
As conditions continued to worsen, motorists about 3 miles south quickly saw things turn from bad to worse. Multiple cars and semi-trucks began to slide off the interstate at exit 116 amid whiteout conditions caused by the snow squall, causing several collisions.
Snow squall warnings began to be issued throughout Pennsylvania shortly after the incident occurred. By 12:30 p.m. EDT, most of central Pennsylvania was under a snow squall warning due to the heavy snow moving across the state.
“The video from [Monday’s] crash on I-81 just shows how scary highway situations can be when you’re talking about snow showers and snow falling very rapidly over a short period of time,” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter said. “Conditions can go from the normal conditions that you’d be experiencing when you’re driving along an interstate to hardly being able to see in front of you near-zero visibility, sometimes in a matter of just a couple of seconds, and that creates a serious concern because you’re not able to see what’s happening in front of you as you drive.”
Less than an hour after the I-81 crash was reported, much of the snow had melted due to the strong late-March sun. Vehicles were backed up for miles in the northbound lane due to the closure of the interstate.
The I-81 pileup comes two weeks after a fiery chain-reaction crash on a foggy St. Patrick's Day morning in Missouri killed five people and seriously injured six others. Dozens of vehicles were involved in the I-57 collisions, which occurred just as fog was enveloping the Charleston area in the southeastern part of the state, about two-and-a-half hours south of St. Louis.
The Missouri crashes started in the southbound lanes when the driver of a Volvo crashed into the rear of another Volvo, triggering the chain-reaction crashes, according to an accident report released this week by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The drivers were not seriously injured, although three victims were pronounced dead at the scene.
Some of the collisions “then migrated to the northbound lanes,” said Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Kinder, snaring 47 vehicles overall — including several tractor trailers — in the wreckage.
Killed in the Missouri crash were: Raina Jamerson, 22, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, a passenger in a vehicle; and drivers Jesse Jimenez, 51, of Houston, Texas; William Ryan, 75, of Pevely, Missouri; Joshua Wiggins, 30, of Candler, North Carolina; and Jose Hernandez, 45, of Houston, who was killed while traveling in the northbound lanes, according to police. In one vehicle, a driver and three passengers were among those seriously injured, police reported.
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or
manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal
attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
News / Winter Weather
Death toll rises to 6 in wake of I-81 snow squall pileup in Pa., police say
Authorities continue to investigate the cause of Monday morning's massive pileup that occurred amid white-out conditions on Interstate 81 in Schuylkill County.
By Marianne Mizera, AccuWeather front page editor & John Murphy, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Mar 30, 2022 3:34 PM EDT | Updated Apr 1, 2022 11:03 AM EDT
The number of people killed in Monday morning's 80-vehicle chain-reaction crash on an eastern Pennsylvania highway has risen to six, authorities said Wednesday, as they continue to investigate how whiteout-conditions from a passing snow squall may have contributed to the pileup.
The fiery crash, which also sent 24 people to area hospitals, was so extensive that cleanup crews and police didn't fully reopen Interstate 81 northbound until shortly after midnight, Wednesday -- nearly two days later. The crash occurred in Foster Township in Schuylkill County, about 90 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
It was "snow and fog mixed together, and it brought the visibility down to zero," driver Mike Moye said immediately after he crashed his vehicle.
Pennsylvania State Police initially confirmed Monday that three people had died in the massive crash but later updated the number of victims Wednesday morning. The victims' identities have not yet been released.
Dramatic video recorded by Moye, who was able to get out of his car and wait off to the side of the road, showed a truck that was on fire surrounded by other vehicles that were crushed during the crash, and vehicle after vehicle plowing into each other.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This video contains graphic language as well as images that some may find disturbing:
People who had fled their vehicles could be seen on the side of the road and could be heard in Moye’s video screaming in horror as vehicles continued to plow into one another.
In all, 80 vehicles were involved, including 39 tractor-trailers and other commercial vehicles and 41 passenger vehicles, according to state police.
Other drivers involved in the accident also described the treacherous driving conditions that preceded the crash.
“Couldn’t even see 3 feet in front of me,” one driver, Lillie Weaver, told WNEP-TV. "Then I knew I was getting close to an exit, so I went over into the right lane and by then my car had slid completely over into the bank and there was no visibility. I could only hear cars around me hitting each other."
Another driver, Bob Kenney, said that all of a sudden it was mayhem: "It was just noise -- car hitting car, truck, explosion. Something blew up back there with that big fire. It was just terrible, unbelievable."
"All of a sudden, all I saw was a wall of trucks sideways," Candy Gerken told WNEP.
Fire on Interstate 81 after pileup occurred during snowy conditions. (Mike Moye)
Those who escaped their vehicles from the pileup were met with blustery cold conditions, with AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures of 14 degrees F at Fort Indiantown Gap -- the closest reporting station to the crash site, near the time the incident occurred. AccuWeather RealFeel® temperatures continued to plummet as the day progressed, getting as cold as 5 degrees F at 2:30 p.m. local time.
Rescue crews were still battling flames from the crash 24 hours later, state police said.
Snow showers first appeared in parts of Pennsylvania early Monday morning. At around 10:20 a.m., shortly before the I-81 crash, multiple accidents were reported on Route 61 in Shamokin Township, about 15 miles west of I-81. The crash caused power lines to go down across the road and shut down the route in both directions, according to Northumberland County Fire Wire. Spotty icy conditions were reported in the area at the time of the crash.
Less than a half-hour later, snow squall conditions could be seen on Interstate 88 at exit 119 in Butler Township, Pennsylvania, via PennDOT traffic cameras. Roads were quickly covered in snow while white-out conditions took over the area, creating dangerous driving conditions.
A drone shot of the 80-vehicle chain-reaction crash along Interstate 81 northbound in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, that killed six people and injured more than 20 on Monday, March 28, 2022. (Photo/Mike Nester)
As conditions continued to worsen, motorists about 3 miles south quickly saw things turn from bad to worse. Multiple cars and semi-trucks began to slide off the interstate at exit 116 amid whiteout conditions caused by the snow squall, causing several collisions.
Snow squall warnings began to be issued throughout Pennsylvania shortly after the incident occurred. By 12:30 p.m. EDT, most of central Pennsylvania was under a snow squall warning due to the heavy snow moving across the state.
“The video from [Monday’s] crash on I-81 just shows how scary highway situations can be when you’re talking about snow showers and snow falling very rapidly over a short period of time,” AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter said. “Conditions can go from the normal conditions that you’d be experiencing when you’re driving along an interstate to hardly being able to see in front of you near-zero visibility, sometimes in a matter of just a couple of seconds, and that creates a serious concern because you’re not able to see what’s happening in front of you as you drive.”
Less than an hour after the I-81 crash was reported, much of the snow had melted due to the strong late-March sun. Vehicles were backed up for miles in the northbound lane due to the closure of the interstate.
The I-81 pileup comes two weeks after a fiery chain-reaction crash on a foggy St. Patrick's Day morning in Missouri killed five people and seriously injured six others. Dozens of vehicles were involved in the I-57 collisions, which occurred just as fog was enveloping the Charleston area in the southeastern part of the state, about two-and-a-half hours south of St. Louis.
The Missouri crashes started in the southbound lanes when the driver of a Volvo crashed into the rear of another Volvo, triggering the chain-reaction crashes, according to an accident report released this week by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The drivers were not seriously injured, although three victims were pronounced dead at the scene.
Some of the collisions “then migrated to the northbound lanes,” said Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Kinder, snaring 47 vehicles overall — including several tractor trailers — in the wreckage.
Killed in the Missouri crash were: Raina Jamerson, 22, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, a passenger in a vehicle; and drivers Jesse Jimenez, 51, of Houston, Texas; William Ryan, 75, of Pevely, Missouri; Joshua Wiggins, 30, of Candler, North Carolina; and Jose Hernandez, 45, of Houston, who was killed while traveling in the northbound lanes, according to police. In one vehicle, a driver and three passengers were among those seriously injured, police reported.
SEE ALSO:
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
Report a Typo