At Least 1 Dead as Dust Storms Cause Pileups in Illinois
At least one person was killed Wednesday after blowing dust triggered multiple vehicle collisions throughout Illinois.
Strong thunderstorm winds caused the dust storms in the Prairie State, according to weather.com meteorologist Brian Donegan. A portion of Interstate 72 near New Berlin and along Interstate 55 near Auburn were affected by the conditions.
The fatal accident occurred on Route 36 between Tuscola and Camargo, IllinoisHomepage.net reports. The roadway was shut down between the two towns. The victim’s identity has not yet been released.
The vehicle containing the victim was involved in a multi-car accident that included at least one tractor-trailer, according to the State-Journal Register. Multiple other injuries were reported from the pileup and at least one motorist had to be pulled from the wreckage of their car.
Julie Wubben captured this video of dust storm in Chestnut, Illinois. #ilwx #cILwx pic.twitter.com/XU6D0e248L
— JC Fultz (@jcfultz) May 17, 2017
Share your pictures of the dust storm impacting central Illinois by clicking See It, Send It in the WICS mobile app! https://t.co/LvOM9nsus6 pic.twitter.com/Dg5AwHzNqV
— WICS ABC 20 (@wics_abc20) May 17, 2017
Police shut down Interstate 72 at the Morgan-Sangamon county line and eastbound Illinois Route 104 at Auburn due to the conditions, which they described as being a “total blackout” at times, the State Journal-Register reports.
U.S. Route 6 had to be closed between Wyanet and Princeton after poor visibility caused two crashes, according to NewsTribune. Traffic on Interstate 80 was slowed to a halt due to accidents.
A ground stop was temporarily in place at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago due to the winds, ABC7 Chicago reports.
More than 3,740 were left without power Wednesday, according to local utility Ameren.
Author: Ada Carr
Original Source: https://weather.com/news/news/dust-storm-wind-illinois-fatal-accident-vehicle-collisions
Picture: http://newschannel20.com/news/local/dust-storms-in-illinois-causes-fatal-car-accidents-05-18-2017
