Massive pileups on icy roads across the U.S. have resulted in the deaths of at least five people and dozens of injuries over the weekend.
Incredible photos from the wrecks, brought on by ice events on both coasts, have surfaced, and some of them are going viral. The images are truly shocking, in particular one of a trapped man who was spared within an inch of his life.
One of the biggest pileups happened along a stretch of I-76 in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania , on Sunday morning. The massive crash closed the interstate in both directions for several hours, which caused headaches for commuters. However, the accident could have been worse had it happened during the week.
Awful RT @CourtneySpamer: Massive pileup on Schuylkill Expy (1-76) in SE PA, due to freezing rain this AM #pawx pic.twitter.com/G4296rh5VM
— Becky Elliott (@AccuWxBeck) January 18, 2015
I-84 finally reopened after massive 26-car pileup closes it for most of Saturday. http://t.co/BbwGyjXoPu pic.twitter.com/pJB5ANs72u
— The Oregonian (@Oregonian) January 18, 2015
The massive pileup occurred when a semi truck jackknifed causing a chain reaction, according to witnesses who could only watch helplessly. The dangerous conditions also affected roads in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut on the East Coast, and in Oregon on the West Coast.
According to the Weather Channel meteorologist Chris Dolce, the massive Philadelphia pileup, which occurred before 7 a.m. on Sunday, was caused by freezing roads in the area.
“With subfreezing air in place to start Sunday morning, locations from southeast Pennsylvania to southern New England have seen light freezing rain and freezing drizzle. Even a small amount of ice can cause major travel problems like we’ve seen this morning.”
Perhaps one of the most shocking images is that of a man, trapped inside his car in the middle of another massive pileup, who barely survived being crushed between two semi trucks. The photo was captured in Oregon, which also saw icy roads in similar weather conditions on Sunday.
GAAAHHHHH! RT @SFGate : Man survives massive Oregon pileup after being wedged between two semis http://t.co/YC5OPYzOeS pic.twitter.com/D6Yive7dHD
— Corey Lewis (@CeeLew) January 18, 2015
http://t.co/1e8sMgcRgf Are you kidding me? I’m going to church. And buying a Chevy pic.twitter.com/3jauWsxacO
— Buckup (@YogUp_c) January 19, 2015
According to National Monitor , Kaleb Whitby, 27, miraculously received only minor injuries despite being sandwiched between two big rigs. The man was reportedly trapped for 30 minutes, and the chilling image was captured by a photographer who was also in the massive pileup , and the image is now going viral. Whitby told Oregon Live he’s happy to be alive and “now I’ve got to figure out why.”
[Image via steve estvanik / Shutterstock.com ]
