Icy Roads Caused Dozens of Car Accidents in Tennessee

After dozens of accidents on westbound Interstate 40, the highway was closed from mile marker 347 to mile marker 330.

The northbound lanes of Interstate 81 between mile marker 44 and mile marker 45 in Greene County were also closed by troopers on the morning of Sunday, January 18, 2009, due to ice on the roads.

Interstate 40 was shut down for hours at mile marker 330 in Crossville where two semi-trucks and a vehicle were involved in a crash.  One of the semi-trucks overturned and was carrying hazardous materials at the time of the accident.  Even though the truck did not leak, Hazmat was called to the crash scene to monitor the situation.

There were also multiple crashes around the blocked portion of the interstate and slick road conditions made it difficult for crews to reach the crash at mile marker 330.

By 6:50 AM that morning, dispatchers were reported as saying that the ice was beginning to melt, but crews were still having difficulty trying to reach all of the collisions and clear the interstate.

According to dispatchers, the interstate in that location looked like a “war zone” and hundreds of cars were reported as waiting on both sides of the interstate for hours.

By 8:00 PM, troopers were estimated to have been working on 50 to 60 accidents in the area.  That number was expected to increase as more accidents were cleared and they were able to get through the mess of vehicles.

Salt trucks and emergency crews were also called to the crash sites.

Numerous problems on Interstate 81 were also reported by dispatchers in Greene County.  The interstate was closed for a few hours from mile marker 44 to mile marker 45 due to the icy conditions on the roads.  There were also numerous minor crashes in that area.

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