Massive 60-Car Pile-up in Central Illinois Caused by Dust Storm, Multiple Fatalities Reported

A dust storm caused a multi-car pile-up on I-55 in central Illinois. (5/1/23) (Credit: Twitter/Nathan Cormier)

Update (6:15 pm Eastern): According to Illinois State Police Major Ryan Starrick, at least six people are dead as a result of the crash.

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Original Story

A fiery 60-car pile-up happened late Monday morning on I-55 in central Illinois. The horrific wreck appears to have been caused by loose dirt and high winds. Normally, dust storms connote the deserts of the Southwest, but the combination of dry conditions, loose soil from freshly-plowed fields, and high, gusty winds resulted in extremely low visibility which led to multiple collisions along the stretch of interstate south of Springfield, Illinois.

Video of the scene can be viewed in the tweet below.

The accident resulted in multiple injuries and several fatalities.

Illinois State Police said the crash was reported at 10:55 a.m. local time near Milepost 76 in Montgomery County, just south of Springfield. State police later confirmed multiple fatalities from the pileup, which also injured more than 30 people who were transported to area hospitals.

Montgomery County emergency management officials said that 10 helicopters were requested to the scene, and that several buses from a local school were called to the scene to pick up stranded motorists, WAND-TV reported.

Per the Illinois State Police, at least 40 passenger cars and 20 tractor-trailers were involved in the crash, with two of the tractor-trailers catching fire following the collision.

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“Visibility in the area is reported to be low due to blowing dust. Traffic is urged to seek alternate routes,” Trooper Melissa Albert-Lopez said.

Additional video below shows the scene and poor visibility.

 

Due to the severity of the accident, the interstate was shut down in both directions and is expected to remain that way into Tuesday.

 

 

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