Interstate 90 reopens after foggy pileup
(AP) - Interstate 90 in southern Wisconsin has reopened after a foggy pileup involving more than 100 vehicles near Madison.
The Wisconsin State Patrol shut down stretches of the interstate in both directions Sunday after a series of crashes that left two dead and 50 others injured.
The stretch of Interstate 90 east of Madison was closed in both directions, causing a traffic backup of about five miles.
A truck plowed into vehicles that had braked upon reaching a fog bank, causing one pileup, Wisconsin State Patrol Lt. Laurie Steeber said. One person was killed.
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A similar pileup three miles away happened when another group of vehicles on the interstate also began braking in fog, Steeber said. A second person was killed in that pileup.
At least three dozen vehicles were involved in the two pileups, Steeber said. Thirty-five people were taken to Madison hospitals, three with life-threatening injuries, she said.
Two people were discharged from Meriter Park Hospital after treatment for minor injuries, spokeswoman Mae Knowles said. The conditions of the others were unknown. The preliminary investigation shows that some motorists were traveling at least 70 mph -- above the 65 mph speed limit.
The Madison area was fogged in all day, with visibility of an eighth of a mile or less when the pileup started, said Chris Franks, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sullivan.
The fog continues to linger over parts of Wisconsin today.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)