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Accident scene on I-94 today -- The road was reopened in the afternoon (State Police Photo)
MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. (AP) — Nearly two dozen cars and trucks crashed Wednesday on a slippery section of Interstate 94 in northern Indiana, closing a six-mile stretch of the westbound lanes, police said. State police Sgt. Ann Wojas said no serious injuries were being reported in the crash that involved 10 cars and 12 tractor-trailers about three miles east of the Michigan City exit. [Mile Marker 38 (at Johnson Road bridge)] Between 2 and 3 inches of snow fell overnight making driving slick along the highway. Wojas said the accident was reported around 7:10 a.m., and police expected to keep the road closed for several more hours. Troopers were diverting traffic off I-94 at the U.S. 20 exit in LaPorte. [The highway reopened in the afternoon.] “I was coming down that hill there and all of a sudden I saw all these cars and trucks flaring left and right,” Todd Skiles, of Westland, Mich., told The News-Dispatch as he stood next to his van. “Everybody started smashing up. Then I saw this semi coming from behind. If (the truck driver) wasn’t such a great driver, this could’ve been a lot worse.” Semis were jackknifed into one another, and the back half of a full-size van’s front end was embedded in the engine of a tractor-trailer. Wojas said at least 70 crashes were reported throughout Wednesday morning in her district, which includes interstates 80 and 94. Troopers farther southeast in the Muncie-Marion area reported several crashes and slide-offs on Interstate 69. “It’s due to motorists driving too fast for the road conditions,” state police Sgt. Rod Russell said. “They’re not taking time to slow down for the road conditions.” Their accident total included 15 property damage crashes, two that involved minor injuries and one fatality that was not weather-related. ----
"Remember, Ice and Snow, Take it Slow!" INDOT asks Posted 2/20/2008
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