Fog warning lights, switched on on the advice of motorway patrols, were not active at the time of the pileup. On the M1 just north of the A505 junction near Luton, United Kingdom, due to fog. Two more separate chain collisions involving an additional 50 cars (also attributed to fog) occur on the Harbor Freeway the same day. Main article: List of traffic collisions DateĪ fog bank settles over the Santa Ana Freeway and causes a chain reaction collision involving more than 100 cars and both directions of travel. The large scale of these collisions can close important highway routes for several days, or even longer if highway support structures are damaged. A fiery pileup inside a tunnel is the most serious, as there is little means to escape the poisonous fumes, and the confined heat may damage structural supports. The structural steel of bridges and overpasses can also be weakened by the heat. The destruction and intense heat of fires can also damage roadways, particularly by melting and burning the asphalt or spalling concrete surfaces.
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If the collision takes place in a remote area, getting medical help to the scene can be a daunting task.
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Multiple-vehicle collisions can also overwhelm local firefighting, ambulance, and police services making speedy rescues more difficult. Collisions after the initial collision may occur from the side of the vehicle, where the passenger compartment is more vulnerable.Ī fire in one part of the collision can quickly spread via spilled gasoline and cover the entire crash area. Individual vehicles in a multiple-vehicle collision are often hit multiple times at high speed, increasing the risk of injury to passengers who may have survived the first impact with the benefit of now-discharged protective airbags. Even if survivors are able to exit their vehicles, other cars may strike them. Multiple-vehicle collisions are particularly deadly as the mass of crumpled vehicles makes escape for survivors difficult. Effects Įmergency services work on the scene of a multiple vehicle collision in Toronto In spite of their frequency, little formal research has been done in the United States regarding their cause or causes. Considering that these roads often have high traffic volumes, more cars are forced into braking and skidding, darting into other lanes and in front of oncoming traffic and so more vehicles become involved, creating a chain reaction effect.ĭetermining the cause of such collisions is difficult for investigators and it is often impossible to tell if negligence caused the crash.
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Due to the high traffic speeds on the road, if one car develops a problem and suddenly halts, those behind it cannot stop in time and may hit it. Īnother possibility is a third vehicle is simply too close to the initial collision to avoid hitting one or both of the vehicles.
44 car pile up on idaho highway 2014 drivers#
Augustine, FL Real Estate St.Pile-ups generally occur in low-visibility conditions as drivers on freeways are sometimes caught out by driving too close to the vehicle in front and not adjusting to the road conditions.Ĭhain-reaction crashes can also occur in conditions of good visibility, when black ice or other road hazards are encountered unexpectedly as drivers round a curve or crest a hill. Prescott, AZ Real Estate Moreno Valley, CA Real Estate St.