Illinois dust storm causes 40-60 car accidents

One America News ^ | 4:14 PM – Monday, May 1, 2023 | Geraldyn Berry

[Olog-hai]

At least 40 to 60 vehicles collided along a busy roadway in Central Illinois on Monday as a result of a dust storm, officials have reported.

“The cause of the crash is due to excessive winds blowing dirt from farm fields across the highway leading to zero visibility,” Illinois State Police said in a press release.

I-55 was shut down in Sangamon and Montgomery counties as a result of the accidents along the highway, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation.

Sangamon County is home to Springfield, the state capital. Winds across the region had been blowing between 35 and 45 mph. …

[janetjanet998]

Some video
Multiple fatalities after a dust storm in Illinois caused dozens of crashes along a major highway
https://rumble.com/v2li7mi-multiple-fatalities-after-a-dust-storm-in-illinois-caused-dozens-of-crashes.html

[norwaypinesavage]

I happened to be driving through the area just around the time this was happening. We left Sikeston MO on I 57 at around 7 AM and drove through Effingham IL at around 11 AM. It was very windy, but there was no dust blowing at all. we might have been just far enough east of the flat prairie land to miss the dust. It was raining after that.

[Openurmind]

If you can still read the speed limit signs then good to go...

[trebb]

New headline:

“Drivers Show Us The Reason The Blind Don’t Drive”

[Deplorable American1776]

Prayers to the families of the victims.

[Bernard]

I was northbound on I-57 from Salem to Champaign. There was enough rain coming down to apparently keep the dust from being a problem like that. Same thing on I-74 and I-39

[Pollard]

Bet the farmer who had just plowed his field feels pretty bad today.

[IYAS9YAS]

Bet the farmer who had just plowed his field feels pretty bad today.

Why? The farmer has no control over the weather and the drivers who don't slow down when visibility drops.

[Pollard]

My actual "forecast".

Today: Sunny, with a high near 66. Northwest wind 9 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 32 mph.

Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 69. Northwest wind 6 to 9 mph.

Knowing the hwy is SW of your very dry field, which day would be best to till it, today or tomorrow?

Aside from that, even the most inadvertent accident that kills multiple people is bound to make the person who caused it feel bad.

[IYAS9YAS]

Knowing the hwy is SW of your very dry field, which day would be best to till it, today or tomorrow?

Nothing in the report says the fields were recently tilled. It just says dirt from fields. That part of I-55 in Illinois is nothing but farmland. I'd imagine the fields would be bare dirt right now either waiting on planting or in the middle of being planted. And not having any crops up to mitigate dust. Sometimes things are beyond your control. We get nasty spring winds where I live. We have nothing but dirt and sand here. My dirt and sand mingles with everyone elses' dirt and sand. Some days I can't see the mountains ten miles away it's so bad. It happens. You cannot blame yourself for something beyond your control. Hell, we get forecasts calling for wind all the time. And sometimes get no wind. And other times we get no wind forecasted and we get nasty winds with no notice.

[Paul R.]

That was a pretty potent tight system. It is still well defined in the satellite imagery. I'm well to the SE, and got hailed on. Was working in the garden and it got cloudy but didn't seem "thunderstorm" threatening. Then it suddenly started raining fairly hard and I grabbed a couple tools and ran to the house thinking, "Dang, this is cold rain!" Before I got to the house it was pea size hail. Stung a bit, but no real injury... A friend was at a fishing tournament - not sure where, maybe KY Lake. (He's a pro and goes to tournaments all over the Midwest & Mid-South.) They got it more and a little bigger. Later, I was driving and in ~ 40 minutes spotted in the mostly cloudy sky 3 cumulus clouds you'd expect a brief shower from at most, but they had white "curtains" of hail visibly streaming down.

It's mostly sunny today, but that system is still keeping the wind up, just about as strong as yesterday. :-(

One of our local TV mets did some research: It's been wet for us this spring (mostly in March), only a wee bit above average temperatures, and... it's been the windiest spring here on record.

[nikos1121]

I’ve driven the full length of I-55.

It can be treacherous all season long. Tornado like rain, snow white outs, dust storms.

You need to pull off immediately when this happens. Not keep driving like most people do.....

[Beave Meister]

I’m down here investigating this incident right now. So far there is no proof that any farmer was in the field with a tractor or combine kicking the dust up. However there is proof that some of these farms have removed the fence rows and hedge rows that are supposed to brake up the wind. These measures were implemented after the Great Dust Bowl back in the 30’s. Some of the farmers want that land where the fence and hedge rows are for planting more crops. I have a feeling that will be addressed soon. There’s a great documentary on this subject called Kiss the Ground.

[Paul R.]

Problem is, if you pull off, find a place to get WAY off, or you may get clonked hard from the rear if an accident or near accident develops just behind you. Obviously this an advantage for 4WDS / AWD vehicles with good traction off pavement tires and high ground clearance.

[IYAS9YAS]

Some of the farmers want that land where the fence and hedge rows are for planting more crops. I have a feeling that will be addressed soon.

Thanks for the information. I live in New Mexico, and we see hard winds in the spring. Just the way of life here. I've seen those types of windbreaks all over the west. One thing I've noticed is they tend to work in lighter winds, but not in the winds that hit hard and fast and lift the top layers of soil up. There's little protection from that.