Fog Played a Major Role in a Deadly Accident in Oregon

Police claim that fog played a part in a fatal chain-reaction collision on an Oregon highway. Over 60 automobiles were involved in the chain-reaction incident on Interstate 5 during morning rush hour, according to officials, and at least one person was killed.

Accident During a Fog

Wednesday's over 60-vehicle pileup in western Oregon resulted in at least one fatality, and investigators suspect that the dense fog in the region during the incident may have played a role.

At 7:42 a.m. PDT, a chain-reaction collision took place on Wednesday on Interstate 5 southbound in Linn County between Salem and Eugene, according to the Oregon State Police. Authorities reported at least one fatality from the collisions, noting that the fog at the time of the tragedy severely reduced visibility. Police said that 45 passenger automobiles, 15 to 20 tractor-trailer trucks, and other business vehicles were involved in the pileup.

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Immediate Response

After the collision, all southbound lanes of I-5 were shut off with a diversion in place, and as of Wednesday afternoon, northbound traffic was still "slow moving."

State police momentarily lifted the wire barrier dividing the two sides of the freeway to allow southbound traffic to be diverted onto the northbound lanes. Approximately 40 stranded truckers from Eugene were picked up by school buses and sent to a neighboring truck stop. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and HAZMAT teams were called to mop up the spillage after the state police reported that several semi-trucks involved in the pileup leaked fluids onto the road.

The closest airport, in Corvallis, Oregon, about 13 miles away from the accident, reported fog and visibility of about a quarter of a mile at 7:40 a.m., according to AccuWeather Senior Weather Editor Jesse Ferrell. PDT, adding that circumstances at the crash scene could have changed.

State police collision unit investigators attempted to recreate the incident to identify what caused it. The Oregon Department of Transportation also noted two other multi-vehicle collisions close to the Corvallis-Lebanon exit on I-5 Southbound.

According to police, fog also contributed to a Missouri multi-vehicle collision that claimed at least six lives in March. During the morning rush hour, the chain-reaction collisions also happened on Interstate 57 near Charleston.

Driving in a Fog

Keep in mind the following safety advice if you must travel in foggy circumstances, advises the National Weather Service:

Slow down and allow extra time to reach your destination.
Make your vehicle visible to others both ahead of you and behind you by using your low-beam headlights since this means your taillights will also be on. Use fog lights if you have them.
Never use your high-beam lights. Using high beam lights causes glare, making it more difficult for you to see what's ahead of you on the road.
Leave plenty of distance between you and the vehicle in front of you to account for sudden stops or changes in the traffic pattern.
To ensure you stay in the proper lane, follow the lines on the road with your eyes.
In extremely dense fog where visibility is near zero, the best course of action is to first turn on your hazard lights, then pull into a safe location, such as a local business's parking lot, and stop.
If there is no parking lot or driveway to pull into, pull your vehicle off to the side of the road as far as possible. Once you come to a stop, turn off all lights except your hazard flashing lights, set the emergency brake, and take your foot off the brake pedal to be sure the tail lights are not illuminated so that other drivers don't mistakenly run into you.