(Reuters) – A pile-up involving more than 100 vehicles closed a portion of an interstate highway in Illinois on Thursday amid a snowstorm, according to state police and video posted on social media.
Part of Interstate 39 near El Paso, Illinois, was shut after multiple accidents starting at about 3:13 p.m. CST (2115 GMT), according to a report from ABC 7 in Chicago. Authorities did not report any injuries, the report said.
The highway will be shut for 12 hours between the towns of Normal and Minok, Illinois State Police said in a statement on Twitter.
Motorist David Troesser’s pickup truck skidded off the road during the pileup, causing his airbag to deploy, according to video Troesser took on cellphone in the aftermath of the accident.
Troesser’s video showed numerous cars, trucks and tractor trailers splayed across the roadway, some with leaking fluids. One tractor trailer had lost its load, with engine parts strewn on the snow-covered road.
People struggled to free their vehicles from the snow while others retrieved items from their damaged cars, including an animal carrier.
One sedan had its entire back-end crushed.
Troesser warns people in the video to leave their cars in case more vehicles crash into the pileup. He said he injured his knee in the accident.
An ambulance arrived on the scene 10 minutes after the accident, he said.
(Reporting by Nur Anza Sansui; Writing by Christian Schmollinger; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
