• 07
  • January
    2012

"We had off-going medics that said, 'Hey, I'll stay,' and new medics that said, 'I'm ready to go,'" says Brandon Hebert, as Jessica Lipscomb reports for the Houston Chronicle. Hebert is the operations manager for an ambulance company. It was these medics - some who had just worked a 12-hour shift - who rushed to the scene of a massive car wreck pileup on Texas 73 early Thursday morning.

As Lipscomb reports, there were no fewer than 22 distinct car crashes in a pileup that apparently involved just shy of 80 motor vehicles in total.

Four people sustained serious injuries, but no one lost their lives. Many more sustained non-life threatening injuries in the crash.

How the Pileup Happened

There was fog. It was difficult to see. Traffic moved at around 70 miles per hour through an area burning from marsh wildfires. It must have been a chain reaction. One accident caused another, and then another, as traffic moved at high-speed down Texas 73.

In Texas, drivers should exercise due caution when driving. This means slowing down in poor visibility conditions. In all, 18 motorists were issued traffic citations by police in this pileup.

Source: Houston Chronicle, "54 injured in estimated 40-vehicle wreck on Texas 73," by Jessica Lipscomb, 1/6/12