At least six people have died after around 130 vehicles crashed on an icy freeway in Texas.
The number of injured people currently stands at 65 as police continue to work at the scene of the pile-up on the Interstate 35W near downtown Fort Worth.
First responders took 36 people to hospitals, MedStar spokesman Matt Zavadsky told the Star-Telegram newspaper.
Police spokesman, Daniel Segura confirmed an officer was involved in the crash and was in a stable condition.
Mike Drivdahl from the Fort Worth Fire Department told ValleyCentral.com that firefighters were going car-to-car to check for people who urgently need medical attention.
“If you don’t have to get out, please don’t get out,” Mr Drivdahl told NBC 5.
“We have a lot of emergency crews doing a lot of work. The last thing we need is people who don’t need to be out getting into any type of accidents.”
He added that crews were facing the challenge of carrying out the rescue in icy conditions and were using salt and sand to melt the ice and reach trapped drivers in the crash.
— Fort Worth Fire Department (@FortWorthFire) February 11, 2021
Fort Worth Police said on Twitter that the freeway was backed up in both directions and advised drivers to seek an alternate route.
The force added that a family reunification location had been set up for families to meet drivers and passengers involved in the pileup.
A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect until midday on Thursday for the Dallas and Fort Worth areas after an overnight sleet storm turned the region’s roads into icy highways.
Ice storm warnings are also in effect from Arkansas to Kentucky, while another winter storm was predicted to bring snow to Mid-Atlantic states, the National Weather Service said.
More than 125,000 homes and businesses were without electricity Thursday morning, largely in Kentucky and West Virginia, according to the website poweroutage.us, which tracks utility reports.
Meanwhile, officials in central Kentucky were urging people to stay home due to icy conditions from a winter storm that downed tree limbs and power lines.
