Florida Overnight Wrecks Leave 9 Dead, 'Terrible Pileup'
Authorities on Sunday said that poor visibility is to blame for the series of accidents on Interstate 75 in northern Florida that resulted in the death of 9 people.
The Alachua County Sherriff's Office said that not only fog but heavy smoke from a nearby wildfire most likely caused zero visibility among drivers which ultimately led to the misfortune.
ABCNews is reporting that all 6 lanes, 3 in each direction, had been closed for further investigation in order to confirm what caused the pile-up and wrecks but were reopened once the visibility improved.
According to the Gainesville Sun, the poor visibility also caused accidents on the U.S. 441 where the lanes were initially closed but later re-opened.
Close to two dozen people were injured and taken to nearby hospitals.
County Sheriff Sergeant Todd Kelly informed that large commercial trailers as well as passenger cars were involved in the accident that occurred between 11:00 p.m. Saturday and 3:45 a.m. Sunday.
"It's the worst I've seen in 14 years of service," he added according to CNN.
