At least six people were killed Monday in collisions between about 100 cars on a highway in the US state of Illinois after a dust storm reduced visibility, police said.
Illinois State Police said in a statement that about 40 to 60 passenger cars and 30 commercial vehicles were involved in collisions in the Midwestern state “due to strong winds that blew dust from agricultural fields across the highway.”
Massive pileup on I-55 south of Springfield, Illinois has closed the interstate for nearly 30 miles. Blowing dust off freshly plowed fields led to very low visibility#ilwx
— Nick Hausen (@NickHausenWx) May 1, 2023
🎥: Nathan Cormier pic.twitter.com/im7QLE8BTp
The statement added that the fire broke out in two pickup trucks in traffic accidents that occurred in the late morning along more than three kilometers of Interstate 55, which connects the cities of Chicago and St. Louis.
Full video of the accident scene on I-55 south of Springfield, IL near the Sangamon Montgomery county line. Horrific. Dust being kicked up by 45mph winds contributing to this awful tragedy where sadly people have lost their lives. pic.twitter.com/oaWXoIHJXK
— Kevin Lighty – WCIA 3 Chief Meteorologist (@KevinLighty) May 2, 2023
Police said more than 30 people were taken to hospital with “minor to life-threatening” injuries, according to Agence France-Presse.
The ages of the victims ranged between two years and 80 years, while the photos published from the scene showed the firefighters in the midst of dust, fog and smoke from the burning cars, which went off the road in sometimes almost non-existent visibility conditions.
Eight people were killed in a similar accident in Utah in 2021 when a sandstorm caused a chain of collisions between 22 cars.
