Screen Shot 2013-12-15 at 6.59.30 PMRacine – Once the snow began falling the roads started getting slippery, and that meant a sudden increase in car crashes on I-94 eastbound.
When the snow stopped the damage had already been done. It was a heavy, wet, fast-falling snow, which wreaked havoc on I-94. From the Jane Addams Tollway, to Arlington Heights Road, navigating the roads was treacherous.
“I was going to Chicago. Making a stop and cleaning off my windshield wiper ’cause it got frozen, just taking it slow,” said Jorge Gonza lez.
Department of Transportation (DOT) officials say they had salt trucks and plows out trying to keep up with the falling snow.
Illinois State Police report several weather-related crashes and spinouts, but that was nothing compared to the treacherous road conditions on I-94 in Racine County.
In Wisconsin, injuries and death resulted from two separate multi-vehicle pileups that took place along a five mile stretch of I-94 in Racine County.
Poor visibility and poor road conditions led to 37 vehicles and 11 semis crashing into each other or driving into ditches.. It took nearly seven hours to reopen I-94.
State Sen. Kathleen Vinehout was hospitalized for injuries she received from a crash on I-94 in Racine County.
Because of the high number of crashes, State Police said the whole area was under an emergency snow plan, which means if you are in an accident, your car is drivable and you are uninjured, you should continue along the way and report the accident later.