By AccuWeather staff writer
An image of the multi-vehicle pileup on I-84 between milepost 216 and 302 in Oregon. (Twitter/Oregon State Police)
The front edge of a train of winter storms moving across the country brought snowy conditions to parts of the northern United States on Monday, making for dangerous driving conditions across roadways in eastern Oregon and parts of North Dakota that contributed to dangerous multi-car crashes and led to highway closures.
As police officers responded to a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 84 between Pendleton, Oregon, and La Grande, Oregon, the officers could hear additional crashes occurring behind them as conditions continued to worsen, according to an emergency alert released by the Oregon State Police.
"The largest crash is estimated to involve between 15-20 cars and trucks. Early estimation is that as many as 98 vehicles have crashed in the area," the alert read.
The massive pileup, which police reported occurred around 12:20 p.m., CST, led to the closure of I-84 Monday afternoon. The roadway is still closed as of Tuesday morning. That stretch of highway, known locally as Cabbage Hill, is notorious for poor winter weather, according to reporting from The Oregonian. Large crashes are relatively common in the area, as are freeway closures that strand motorists.
One multi-vehicle crash involved between 15 to 20 vehicles, according to an emergency alert released by the Oregon State Police. However, they estimate that as many as 98 vehicles have crashed in the area. (Oregon State Police)
At the time the alert was issued, emergency medical responders were treating injured patients on the scene, but they could not give an estimate of the total number of injuries.
Meanwhile, in North Dakota, near-whiteout conditions led to a multi-vehicle crash that caused multiple injuries on I-94 near Casselton.
Northerly winds reaching 20-30 mph with gusts to 40 mph led to whiteout conditions at times in North Dakota Monday with the visibility reduced to less than a quarter of a mile, and at times near zero, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Paul Walker said. Around 11 a.m., CST, when the North Dakota Highway Patrol reported that crews were responding to the crash, strong winds and heavy snow combined to create visibility limited to a quarter-mile.
The rescue, which was in part conducted by the Casselton Volunteer Fire Department, occurred with AccuWeather RealFeel® Temperatures measuring at least 30 degrees below zero degrees Fahrenheit. The crash involved 14 vehicles and injured at least six people, according to reporting from KX News.
Video footage shows extreme conditions with heavy snowfall falling as rescuers desperately try to pry people from their vehicles. Fargo, roughly 25 miles away, measured about 4.4 inches of snowfall by midnight Monday night, according to the National Weather Service.
As of Tuesday morning, I-94 was still closed, according to KX News.
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