Illinois: Dust storm causes multiple deaths and up to 60 crashes | US News
A massive dust storm caused several deaths and a pile-up of dozens of vehicles in south-central Illinois, according to police.
Monday’s storm wreaked havoc on Interstate 55. About 40 to 60 passenger vehicles and several semi-trucks were involved in accidents, Illinois State Police Department Major Ryan Starrick said. Two of the articulated trucks burst into flames.
There have been “several deaths,” Starrick said, but didn’t give a number.
More than 30 people were injured and taken to hospitals after the crashes in the northbound and southbound lanes, he said.
“The cause of the accidents is attributed to excessive wind blowing debris from agricultural fields across the highway, resulting in zero visibility,” Starrick said.
The freeway was closed to through traffic in both directions in Montgomery County, about 75 miles north of St. Louis.
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