Texas Multi-Vehicle Crash Kills At Least 5

At least 17 vehicles, including semi-trucks, were involved in a multi-vehicle crash pile-up in Austin, Texas on Thursday, March 13. As a result, at least five people were killed and 11 were injured. The dead include three adults, a child, and one infant, as per KXAN.

According to the Austin Police Department, and reported by ABC News, the crash occurred at approximately 11:23 p.m. on Thursday on North IH, 35 southbound. As police arrived at the scene, they discovered that a total of 17 vehicles were involved.

People stuck in their vehicles needed urgent assistance and, unfortunately, authorities found the five dead among them. In total, all patients were retrieved from the site in about 40 minutes. KVUE reports that diesel spilled from a semi-truck, but it has since been contained.

“This incident was incredibly chaotic, and it was spread out over about a 10th of a mile,” Captain Krista Stedman from Austin Travis County Emergency Medical Services (ATCEMS) said. “So without the collaboration of our partners, we would not have been able to manage the scene as well as we did. We were able to get all the critical patients off the scene within about 40 minutes and, considering how complex the scene was, that’s pretty impressive.”

Rescue And Hospitalization

Witnesses and bystanders also helped after the crash occurred.

We decided just to run and just start helping out the people,” Edgar Viera, who heard the crash, told KXAN. According to him, upon arrival, he and others saw cars smashed together and several fatal victims, including children. “We didn’t have the proper tools to open the vehicles, so we just did what we could,” Viera continued. “It was hard to see this.”

As per ATCEMS, out of the 11 people injured, five of them, four adults and a child, have life-threatening injuries. Two other children and four adults sustained minor injuries during the crash.

ATCEMS confirmed that two seriously injured adults were transported to St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center. An additional two adults with serious injuries and one with minor injuries were transported to Dell Seton Medical Center. Three adults with minor injuries were transported to Seton Medical Center. The three children were transported to Dell Children’s Medical Center while an adult refused transport.

Currently, the multi-vehicle crash is being investigated by authorities. Details surrounding the crash itself have not been revealed and no arrests have been made. None of the victims have been named at the moment.

“The vehicular homicide unit is doing their job,” Thayer Smith, Austin Fire Departmnt Assistant Chief, told ABC News. “They’re going to do an investigation, which is why the highway may be closed for an extended period of time, because it is a very lengthy process.”