Horrifying Footage Shows 70-Plus Vehicle Pile Up in Ft. Worth That Killed at Least Five

Ice covered I-35W Thursday morning, resulting in a disaster that stretched roughly one mile long.

byRob Stumpf|
Horrifying Footage Shows 70-Plus Vehicle Pile Up in Ft. Worth That Killed at Least Five
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Icy conditions on a busy Texas interstate are responsible for at least five deaths Thursday. Around 6 a.m. local time, between 75 and 100 vehicles collided with one another along a mile-long stretch of Interstate 35W outside of Fort Worth.

A rare-for-Texas combination of wintery conditions and bouts of freezing rain caused an accumulation of nearly a tenth of an inch. A slew of tractor-trailers and commuters collided on the slick road surfaces, crumpling vehicles and trapping drivers under piles of mangled metal.

WKYC Channel 3 via YouTube

According to CNN, ice was reported on an overpass nearby the accident, pointing towards the wintery conditions being partly responsible for the carnage. Vehicles continued plowing into one another, unable to stop in time on the frozen pavement, causing a pile-up nearly a mile long.

Emergency crews who arrived on the scene corroborate the report of poor road conditions, some of whom reportedly fell while walking on the roadway due to the ice. Responders began spreading a sand and salt mixture to improve the conditions and better respond to the needs of those involved in the accident. At least one ambulance was reportedly hit on the roadway, though no crew members were hurt.

“The vehicles are just mangled. Multiple tow trucks are on scene. It’s going to take a lot to disentangle this wreck,” said Matt Zavadsky, spokesman for ambulance provider MedStar, in a statement to the Associated Press. “The roadway was so treacherous from the ice that several of the first responders were falling on the scene,” Zavadsky said.

Know that the following videos show vehicles adding on to the pileup and are graphic in nature:

Local news outlets including ABC affiliate WFAA report that crews have only recently begun removing vehicles from the scene.

Forth Worth wasn't alone in its icy conditions. Unexpected wintery weather swept across the middle of the country, with states like Arkansas and Kentucky also reporting an increase of weather-related crashes. A separate accident involving a total of 26 vehicles occurred roughly 200 miles away in Austin, sending five people to the hospital.

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