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January 30, 2012

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9 die in US car crashes

AT least nine people died in a series of crashes apparently caused by heavy smoke and fog overnight on Interstate 75 in north Florida, authorities said yesterday.

Florida Highway Patrol Lieutenant Patrick Riordan said the pileups happened around 3:45am yesterday on both sides of I-75 south of Gainesville. All lanes of the interstate remained closed as investigators began trying to figure out what caused the early morning crashes.

Riordan said several people were injured and taken to Gainesville hospitals. Their conditions were unclear.

At least 17 people hurt in the wreck were being treated at Shands at the University of Florida, the hospital said on its website.

The FHP had closed the highway briefly overnight because of a mixture of fog and smoke from a marsh fire in the Paynes Prairie area south of Gainesville.

"When the visibility cleared, we reopened the road," he said.

He said he is not sure how much time passed between the reopening of the highway and the first crash.

At least four to five large commercial vehicles and about six passenger vehicles were involved. Riordan said many were badly compressed.



 

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