Interstate 90 in Leroy Township, Ohio, was shut down on Thursday following a massive pileup involving approximately 70 vehicles. The pileup occurred shortly before 3 p.m., and involved more than 30 commercial trucks and buses.
At least 20 people were injured and were taken to nearby hospitals.
UPDATE: This accident on I-90 is becoming a large event with multiple entrapments in vehicles. Numerous
Chief Deputy Frank Leonbruno
— Lake County Sheriff (@lakeohsheriff) December 8, 2016
The highway was still closed between Route 44 and Route 528 of 8:30 p.m., however the Ohio Department of Transportation said they’re aiming to get the interstate reopened before Friday morning rush hour.
There are still many damaged vehicles on the roadway that must be removed.
Police and fire are working to get the injured from the accidents on interstate 90 to the area hospitals, clear vehicles and open traffic lanes. However the accidents are significant and it will be 4 to 6 hours at a minimum to get traffic lanes open. We are currently working to get non-injured parties off the freeway and also by diverting traffic
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office posted the following update at 8:05 p.m.
Interstate 90 remains closed in both the east and westbound lanes between Route 44 and Route 528. All of the injured have been taken to area hospitals. There are still a number of tractor-trailers and damaged vehicles that must be removed from the roadways until interstate 90 is reopened
A note of thanks to all fire departments and police personnel from Willoughby to Madison along the interstate 90 Corredor who worked together to get the injured from their vehicles that were trapped and to get stranded motorists moving again. Thanks as well to the many tow companies who were instrumental in helping to get people out of vehicles and to move the damage to vehicles from the accident scene. Thanks as well to area police departments who helped handle the diverted traffic along route 20, Route 2 and Route 84.
Our prayers for those injured and wishes for a speedy recovery.
Chief Deputy Frank Leonbruno
This pileup happened just a few hours after a 40 vehicle crash killed three on Interstate 96 in Michigan.
You can check Ohio DOT’s real-time traffic map for live updates.
Update (12/9/2016):
The highway has been fully reopened.