MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Dozens of people were injured in a massive traffic pileup amid snowy conditions in southern Wisconsin on Friday, which blocked Interstate 39/90 for hours, authorities said.
Beloit Memorial Hospital said at least 27 people were treated for injuries sustained in the crash, WIFR-TV reported. The extent of their injuries was not immediately clear, the station said.
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State Patrol officials said snow, ice and whiteout conditions were factors in the crash.
Most of southern Wisconsin remained under a winter weather advisory Friday afternoon with more snow expected Saturday.
The crash occurred at around 12:30 p.m. in Rock County between Janesville and Beloit, the State Patrol said in a statement posted on its Facebook page. Troopers arrived to find the interstate blocked in both directions.
Troopers diverted traffic onto side roads. The southbound lanes reopened just after 8 p.m., the State Patrol said on Twitter late Friday.
WIFR-TV posted live video of the scene just before 4 p.m. showing semitrailers backed up as emergency workers assisted motorists.
As of 6 a.m. Friday, the Beloit area had seen 2.2 inches of snow over the last 24 hours, according to the National Weather Service.
The State Patrol said in a separate statement that another multi-vehicle crash around 1:30 p.m. Friday blocked northbound Interstate 41 in Kenosha County near the Wisconsin-Illinois border. Those lanes reopened by 7:35 p.m. Snow, ice and whiteout conditions factored into that crash as well, according to the State Patrol.
