“Everybody was all over the road," one person recalled of the incident
Credit: Colorado State Patrol
NEED TO KNOW
- Drivers and community members recount a multi-vehicle collision in Colorado that led to at least eight people being hospitalized
- Local authorities said there were an “Estimated 75+ vehicles involved”
- No fatalities were reported in the April 14 incident
Individuals involved in a 70-car pileup in Colorado are opening up about the harrowing situation after several people were hospitalized.
The Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office announced the multi-vehicle crash at 3 p.m. on an on-ramp to Interstate 70 East on Tuesday, April 14, amid snowy conditions. In a later update, officials said an estimated "75+" vehicles were involved in the crash and blocked I-70 and Highway 6 eastbound. I-70 East was closed at the Eisenhower Tunnel.
In a Facebook update on Tuesday, the sheriff's office said I-70 East was reopened at 8:10 p.m.
Credit: Colorado State Patrol
"It started snowing hard like a squall, the snow got heavier and all of a sudden we hit ice,” Tom Brock, who had been driving with his wife, told CBS Colorado. “Everybody was all over the road."
Their car sustained damage, but the husband and wife were not physically injured.
"I didn't see it coming," Emily Medina, another driver, said in a separate interview with CBS Colorado.
"I was just exiting the tunnel, and everything looked pitch black. It was snowing heavily. When I went to brake, because I could see cars that had already crashed, I was trying to slow down, and that's when I crashed," she continued.
Photos shared by the Clear Creek County Sheriff's Office showed the hazardous road conditions as well as the aftermath of the collisions.
Media's vehicle was the 11th in the pile-up, according to CBS Colorado. Just when she thought it was over, things continued to worsen.
"I think I was actually one of the last people to crash in that pileup,” Medina said. “Then, right at the end, another truck cut across the road, and there were even more crashes, and people were injured. The person I hit, because, yes, I did crash into someone, they were quite badly injured."
"It was terrifying watching semis jackknife behind you," driver Bobby Ryan told CBS Colorado. "It's not what I'd want to be doing when you're stuck in your car and there's a guardrail on the right and a median on the left."
Credit: Colorado State Patrol
Another driver, who did not share their name in interviews, told CBS Colorado that the situation was comparable to “a pinball” machine, with one collision happening after another.
During the chaos, community members like local restaurant owner Ron Grady stepped up to offer warm shelter and food to those who were stranded in the cold due to the massive multi-vehicle crash.
Grady's restaurant, 511 Rose, was closed yesterday, but he called staff members to come in and offer a limited menu for the emergency.
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"It could be a friendly face or a cup of coffee, just something that we can do to try to help," Grady told CBS Colorado. "If there's people that need help, we want to help. It's just a really nice, small Colorado community."
Eight out of 19 people assessed on the scene were taken to the hospital. The remaining 11 others declined medical transportation, the Colorado State Patrol previously said. One person among those hospitalized “sustained serious bodily injuries.”
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