Fort Value rescues after in a single day sleet flip North Texas streets into “ice sheets”

from: Nexstar, NBCDFW, Rachel Estrada

Posted: 02/11/2021 / 8:13 AM MST
/ Updated: 02/11/2021 / 8:13 AM MST

“If you don’t have to get out, please don’t get out,” said the Fort Worth fire department spokesman

Thin layers of ice are making dangerous journeys on roads and highways in North Texas Thursday morning, with at least three people confirmed to have died overnight in Dallas and dozens of people trapped in their cars in Fort Worth.

Much of the Dallas-Fort Worth area has a winter weather warning until 12:00 noon Thursday.

Dozens of school districts in North Texas are either closed, open late, or go virtual learning on Thursdays due to the possibility of dangerous roads.

Fort Worth

A “mass-crash incident” is occurring on Interstate 35W north of downtown Fort Worth that resulted in dozens of vehicles colliding and trapping drivers, firefighters say.

Mike Drivdahl of the Fort Worth Fire Department said firefighters go from car to car looking for people in need of medical care.

Preliminary details are known and it is not yet known how many people were injured. Drivdahl said it would “take a long time” to fix the damage.

“If you don’t have to get out, please don’t get out,” said Drivdahl in a live telephone interview on NBC 5. “We have a lot of emergency services who do a lot of work. The last thing we need are people who don’t have to be on the road to get into any accidents. “

Crews are grappling with slippery conditions and using everything they can – sand, salt, and cat litter – to melt the ice while sorting out patients injured in the crash, Drivdahl said.

A picture captured from the crime scene and shared on social media showed several 18-wheelers twisting in the rubble.

Firefighters respond to a mass rally of multiple vehicles in Fort Worth Thursday morning after thin layers of ice formed on the highways in North Texas overnight.

Dallas

In Dallas, around 11:17 p.m. on Interstate 45 south on Lamar Street, a person died in a pile-up with multiple vehicles, police said.

Just before 1 a.m., two people were killed and a third was hospitalized in critical condition after an accident on Interstate 45 on Illinois Avenue, police said.

Further information was not immediately available.

Police said several accidents were reported during the night, some of which caused serious injuries and damage to city vehicles.

Arlington

By 7:30 a.m. in Arlington, the emergency services have responded to a total of 82 accidents since 10 p.m., said a police spokesman.

Most of the accidents occurred on bridges and overpasses where people were driving too fast for the weather conditions, the spokesman said.

We had hit a patrol car after midnight at 6500 WIH 20 by another driver due to icy conditions. Fortunately, due to a separate accident, the officer was outside the vehicle during the impact so there are no injuries. The APD car was slightly damaged while the other car was not drivable after the accident pic.twitter.com/I5YFp6K9Ir

– Chief Al Jones (@ChiefArlington) February 11, 2021

Similar to other agencies in North Texas, in @CityOfArlington we have 23 active accidents and 5 assisting motorists with cars being hindered or thrown out. Most of them are on our motorways (IH 20, IH 30, SH 360, US 287). Please avoid unnecessary trips. pic.twitter.com/X5JMrtEr5H

– Arlington, TX Police Department (@ArlingtonPD) February 11, 2021

Shut down

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