65 Car Pileup: Highway Was Like Ice Skating, Say MA Police
A 65-car pileup was the result of icy road conditions on Interstate 290 in Worcester, Mass. Sunday. Vehicles were unable to stop on roads slick with freezing rain, and 40 people were injured in the major crash.
The 65-car pileup occurred at about 7 a.m. Sunday, as three tractor-trailers and many other vehicles collided on the highway about 40 miles west of Boston. Although 40 people were hospitalized because of the accidents, only two were seriously injured, and none died as a result.
"[The roads were] like if you went skating with your kids," Sgt. Stephen Marsh told The Boston Globe. "It was that bad."
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Police were subject to the inclement weather conditions as well, as a police cruiser was rear-ended in the pileup. The trooper driving the car was forced to return to her vehicle to avoid the constantly sliding cars.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation was warned about the upcoming freezing rain in an advisory, and told motorists to wait until the roads were cleared before heading home from Thanksgiving weekend. Unfortunately, few listened, and workers were unable to clear the highway in time.
"It came up suddenly and quickly and the number of crews we had just wasn't enough," Michael Verseckes, a representative from the Department of Transportation, told The Telegram & Gazette.
The resulting multiple car crash forced workers to close interstate 290 from 7 a.m. to about 11:45 a.m.
The icy road conditions shouldn't last much longer Monday- temperatures are forecasted for around 40 degrees in Massachusetts, which is warm enough to thaw the highways.
