1 killed, 9 injured in 25-vehicle crash on Interstate 79 in Butler County
One person was killed and nine others were taken to local hospitals after 25 vehicles were involved in a series of crashes on Interstate 79 in Butler County on Friday, authorities said.
According to the Pennsylvania State Police, multiple crashes on Interstate 79 northbound in Jackson Township due to weather led to the closure of the northbound and southbound lanes between Exit 78 and Exit 88 from around 10:30 a.m. until around 4 p.m.
The person killed was identified as 18-year-old Evan Gingo, of Pittsburgh, authorities said. Justin Zackal, an associate director of university marketing and communication at Slippery Rock University, said the teen was a freshman at Slippery Rock studying exercise science. The university said resources are available for students and staff.
State police said that at least 25 vehicles were involved in the crashes, another 20 vehicles got stuck on the highway and nine people were transported with injuries. The conditions of the nine people injured were not released on Friday.
Wendy Graff and her husband were in a dump truck traveling down Interstate 79 when the crashes started happening.
"As we were coming down the road, I saw people putting brake lights on, and I yelled at my husband, and there were cars spinning out of control," Graff said. "My husband was literally sideways, and luckily, somehow, with his driving, he missed everybody."
Graff said that cars, SUVs, and tractor-trailers were sideways across the road and the hillside. She added that the rapidly changing weather on Friday morning and the road conditions came as a surprise.
"It was perfectly fine," Graff said. "We went through Cranberry, and there was a little bit of snow blowing on the roads, and then all of a sudden, we hit just completely snow-covered and icy roads. We slid for about 200 feet, I would say, on the ice and the bad roads."
State police are investigating the crashes. The detour for the pileups sent drivers to State Route 19 into Zelienople, causing major delays in the borough.
