SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, PA – At 3:35 PM on Friday, March 3, Schuylkill County 9-1-1 dispatched Fire Districts 6 (Delano Twp.,), 26 (Ryan Twp.) and 49 (McAdoo) to Interstate 81 in the area of mile marker 135 Northbound for a motor vehicle accident involving multiple vehicles.
Additional calls were reporting multiple vehicles involved with possible entrapment. First responding units were advised that 9-1-1 was now receiving reports of up to thirty vehicles involved with entrapment; units were advised to anticipate a Mass Casualty Incident.
Units from Mahanoy City (West End Rescue 993 and Engine 454) were added along with rescue units from Hazle Twp. (Luzerne County). McAdoo EMS, Ryan Township EMS, Mahanoy City EMS and APTS Medic 11 were also sent to the scene.
As crews approached the scene from the Delano side they found an extensive backlog that was delaying their arrival to the scene. McAdoo units found that traffic was no longer moving Northbound and began to crossover and travel in the opposite direction on the Interstate.
Crews arrived to find over three dozen vehicles involved with vehicles facing all directions, on the roadway, down the embankment and many suffering severe damage. Rapid assessment discovered entrapment and one person in traumatic arrest. An aeromedical helicopter was placed on standby due to the severity of some injuries.
A view above the scene (L David Truskowsky Photo)
Apparatus began to arrive on the scene and multiple units pulled their rescue tools and began to work on extrication. One patient was rapidly extricated from the wreckage and transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Hazleton.
EMS crews continued to triage the patients and determined the need for a transport to a trauma center. A helicopter was requested to the scene and were directed to land on the Interstate.
Lehigh Valley MedEvac 4 landed on the Interstate and transported one patient to a trauma center. EMS command also requested a second helicopter bringing MedEvac 7 to the scene as well.
Crews from APTS, McAdoo, Sugarloaf, West Hazleton and Mahanoy City transported multiple patients to local hospitals as personnel from Ryan Township, Shenandoah and Pottsville evaluated the remaining patients. Many people escaped the crash unharmed but their vehicles were disabled on the scene. A bus was requested to transport the remaining occupants to a nearby hotel.
Multiple units from the Pennsylvania State Police were on the scene investigating the crash and began to reconstruct it while tow trucks began to line the sides of the roadway on both the North and Southbound sides.
Schuylkill County EMA was requested to respond with their Incident Support Vehicle to set up a command post on the Interstate while reconstructing the crash and beginning to remove the vehicles.
In total, 37 vehicles were involved in the crash and 18 people suffered injuries. An additional 23 people were transported from the scene but were uninjured. It is believed the crash was caused by a severe snow squall moving through the area. The Interstate was re-opened during the overnight hours.
