Monday, December 13, 2010
 
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20-car pileup in Logan County works emergency response system and local agencies

Whiteouts and slick conditions cause day of multiple accidents

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[December 13, 2010]  Sunday was an exceptionally busy day for central Illinois emergency response agencies. Several accidents were reported during the morning hours; however, it was coming up on the noon hour when winds blowing the area's first significant snow began creating whiteout conditions in the country and along the interstates. Then, calls for assistance began one after the other and didn't let up.

Nearby Interstate 57 was shut down until 10:30 p.m. due to whiteout conditions and the number of accidents that were occurring.

A stretch of Interstate 55 through northern Logan County was shut down for four hours.

Terry Storer, deputy director of the Logan County Emergency Management Agency, said that whiteout conditions creating only one-eighth-mile visibilities probably led to most of the vehicle accidents, which included a multi-vehicle incident between Williamsville and Elkhart.

This event began just before noon and grew to a 20-vehicle pileup that included a snowplow, an ambulance, a rescue vehicle and a fire vehicle. A backup formed on I-55 southbound lanes, reaching north of Broadwell, making it difficult for additional later rescue vehicles to get to the scene.

Several people were taken to hospitals with injuries.

The noon hour events drew nearly all of Logan County's accident response resources, including Logan County's sheriff's personnel, EMA, paramedics, rural fire departments and rescue squads.

Mutual aid was called. Assistance came from Sangamon County -- a transport bus took victims to the Williamsville Community Center to keep warm and safe.

Firefighting mutual aid came from Fancy Prairie, Williamsville and Sherman fire departments. Springfield's hazmat team was also present in case of need to apply foam.

In a brief scenario with estimated times:

7 a.m. -- Accidents on I-55 begin.

11 a.m. -- An ambulance is called for a man having chest pains following a single-vehicle accident in the country south of Elkhart at 200th Street and 700th Avenue.

  • Reports of accidents or vehicles sliding off the interstate escalate from near Williamsville to Atlanta, including at mile markers 109, 115, 135 and 138.

11:15 a.m. -- State trooper with passenger in the back seat is rear-ended on I-55.

  • Accident with injuries at mile marker 115.

  • Ambulance with victim and passenger is rear-ended and ditched.

  • Woman in Lincoln who fell on ice needs ambulance transport.

11:48 -- Multiple vehicles around a snowplow on I-55 collide.

  • Semitrailer off the highway.

  • Back of truck in pileup catches fire.

  • Patient who was in ambulance accident and wife walk up a hill to a home and call in to report their location.

  • All ambulances out and all shifts called in for duty.

  • Few county response resources remain available.

  • Multi-agency mutual aid response called.

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  • All ambulances in service when another multiple-vehicle accident with injuries is reported north of Lincoln on I-55 at mile marker 135.

  • Ambulance leaving accident at mile marker 138 responds to report at mile marker 135.

  • OnStar reports a two-vehicle accident with air bags deployed on U.S. Route 136 east of Emden.

  • Middletown Rescue responds to Route 136 accident.

  • Whiteout conditions slow all travel and searching. Many accidents are difficult to find due to reduced visibilities.

Noon -- Illinois Department of Transportation shuts down all lanes on Logan County portion of I-55 north of Williamsville.

  • Accident on Route 136 cannot be found.

  • Multiple rural fire departments are called to bring tankers to accident fire scene.

  • Route 136 accident location report is modified to three miles east of San Jose.

3:30 p.m. -- Ambulance is called to go to the home where the man who was in earlier crashes had walked to. He is having chest pain.

Order was primarily restored by about 4 p.m., with more normal levels of cold, snowy weather incidents continuing through the evening.

All told and calculated, the events resulted in no life-threatening injures but with several people taken to Springfield and Lincoln hospitals. Due to the close proximity of adjacent vehicles, the vehicle fire resulted in the total loss of four vehicles.

Storer reflected: "We came through it much better than it could have been. Now the goal is to just to keep warm."

Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital has its doors open as a warming center if needed. Some fire departments would also be open. If people should have a need, give them a call before going there.

[LDN]

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