Another example of “the truck driver is always at fault”: a Hillsville, Virginia, woman is saying a single truck driver is to blame for Easter Sunday’s horrific 100-car pileup that killed three people and injured dozens.
At this point, investigators are having a difficult time figuring out the exact cause of the massive pileup, but crash witness Tina Snow told WDBJ7 she saw the whole incident unfold.
According to the account Snow gave WDBJ7, a truck was following a slow-moving car on I-77 Southbound. “The 18 wheeler came out of the slow lane and into the fast lane and he didnt brake, he didn’t slow down, he kept going. And the little car in front of him obviously wasn’t going fast enough for him so he braked extremely hard, and when he braked extremely hard, he fish tailed. And at the point of fish tailing, everybody starts slamming their brakes on,” Snow said.
The area of the accident, Fancy Gap, is notorious for dense fog.
The day of the accident, the fog was thick and visibility was limited. Â In fact, lit signs display fog warnings, but even the warning signs could not be seen through the fog that day.
In an accident this massive, it’s often hard to point to a single factor as the crash; it’s often a culmination of factors.
Some witnesses say that cars were following one another too closely and others were driving too fast for conditions.
Investigators believe the pileup was actually composed of 17 individual crashes, involving 95 vehicles. Â Three people lost their lives and dozes more were injured. Â They’re still working to determine the official cause of the accident.
The National Weather Service has tips for drivers who encounter fog:
• Turn your lights on low beam, since high beams reflect off the fog and impair visibility.
• Slow down and watch your speedometer. Fog can make you feel like you’re driving slower than you actually are.
• Listen for traffic – keep your windows cracked open so you can hear cars you cannot see.
• Use the right edge of the road or painted markers as a guide, not other car lights.
• Be patient. Do not pass other cars.
• Do not stop on the road or on the shoulder. If your car becomes disabled, turn off the lights and keep your foot off the brake pedal. Move away from the car to avoid injury.