After the massive 70 car pile-up in Orlando Florida on January 9, many people have begun to wonder if this was the worst traffic accident or pile-up in American history. While tragic and terrible, it is far from the worst.
According to the Associated Press, in the Orlando wreck approximately 70 vehicles were involved, and three reported deaths.
Wikipedia tells us that other wrecks and pile-ups of significant note include the following:
On December 31, 1998, one hundred cars crashed together on Interstate 75, in Central Michigan. The wreck was caused by icy roads, and resulted in one death and 39 injuries.
Twelve people died and another 42 injured when 99 cars collided on a fogged in section of I-75 near Calhoun, Tennessee on December 11, 1990.
While not a multi-vehicle accident, in 1998 in Carrollton, Kentucky, a drunk driver, driving the wrong way down Interstate 71, collided head on with the schoolbus transporting 67 passengers. Twenty-seven of the teenagers died, 34 were injured, and only six passengers escaped unharmed. The drunk driver, who had been arrested multiple times previously for DWI, sustained only superficial injuries. He was found guilty of multiple charges and sentenced to 16 years in prison. When offered parole, he declined and served out his sentence.
On August 2, 2007, the I-35 Mississippi River Bridge in Minneapolis collapsed at the height of the afternoon rush hour. Thirteen people were killed, and 100 injured when their cars were thrown into the Mississipi River in this worst ever bridge disaster in America.
Perhaps the biggest multiple car pile-up in US history occurred on November 29, 1991, when a dust storm blew up on I-5 outside of Coalinga, California. Unable to see in the dust, 164 cars collided, killing 17 and injuring 150.
An article at Findarticles.com tells us that on February 11, 2001 a massive pile-up occurred in Stafford Virginia, involving 117 vehicles, killing one person and leaving 31 others injured.
There have been dozens of major traffic related accidents in America since the invention of the motor vehicle. Determining which is “worst” is a difficult chore, as these accidents fall into multiple categories: Bus accidents, train/car collisions, multiple car collisions due to fog or dust, accidents caused by semi-trucks or drunk drivers. The accidents listed in this article are just a few of the worst known in the US based on currently available information. Other nations have had accidents with even more injuries and fatalities.
Perhaps what we can learn from all of these accidents is that the road can be a very dangerous place to be, and that drivers should always be sober when behind the wheel, be alert to the condition of the road, the weather, and what is happening around his or her vehicle at all times. This will not prevent all accidents from occurring, but it will certainly result in a few less accidents.
Sources:
“Interstate 4 closed after fatal wrecks” Associated Press
“List of Road Accidents” Wikipedia
“Carrollton Bus Collision” Wikipedia
“Handling The Worst Crash Ever In Virginia” FindArticles.Com
