ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. — Weather has wreaked havoc on highways in the midwestern part of the United States, including Indiana.
On Monday, at approximately 11:17 a.m., Indiana State Police (ISP) dispatch reported it began to receive calls of crashes involving multiple vehicles blocking eastbound lanes of the Indiana Toll Road near mile marker 67, which is approximately five miles west of Exit 72 for the US 20/31 Bypass.
“At the time of this incident the area was receiving snow and windy conditions that created severely limited visibility and caused the road to be very slick and icy,” an ISP release stated.
Preliminary ISP investigations indicate that several vehicles traveling eastbound began to spin out on a bridge near mile marker 67 when a pickup towing a trailer made evasive actions to avoid these vehicles. The pickup hit the bridge wall causing the trailer to disconnect and come to a final rest in the eastbound lanes which caused a chain reaction of crashes behind this original crash.
Police say these crashes involved dozens of vehicles that left eastbound lanes blocked with wreckage and vehicles stuck in backed up traffic for miles. An additional series of crashes that involved multiple vehicles blocked westbound lanes near mile marker 68.
Eastbound traffic was diverted off the Indiana Toll Road at Exit 49 and westbound traffic was diverted at Exit 72 while crews worked to remove crashed vehicles and for the crash investigations to be completed. Eastbound and westbound lanes reopened at approximately 4:17 p.m.
Injuries were reported in several crashes, and the patients were transported to area hospitals. None of the injuries are considered life-threatening.
Additional crashes occurred throughout the afternoon, primarily in St. Joseph County and LaPorte County as these dangerous conditions persisted.
Bruce Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has lived in three states including Arkansas, Missouri and Georgia. During his nearly 20-year career, Bruce has served as managing editor and sports editor for numerous publications. He and his wife, Dana, who is also a journalist, are based in Carrollton, Georgia.
