INTERSTATE 4 70 CAR PILE UP IN SMOKE FOG

POLK CITY - It was not until well after the sun came up that most of us got a good look at the damage caused by this morning's 70-car pileup on Interstate 4. But for those who lived through it, the carnage was immediately evident.

Motorist Jim Palmer was willing to talk to FOX 13, but did not want to appear on the air live -- "It's been a very stressful morning," he explained.

"I couldn't see it because of the fog. I just kept hearing impact after impact after impact. People getting out of their cars -- begging for help, moaning, crying. And there was just no way to help them. I couldn't see my hand at the end of my arm. It was not an experience I wish to repeat, ever.

"I immediately got out of my vehicle and went to the farthest edge of the shoulder for fear that I might be struck by any more vehicles coming. The vehicles immediately to me, people were getting out and I had a first aid kit, I just gave people standard bandages and things like that. But pretty much we just had to stay put until FHP and emergency response could get there. There was no visibility, there was no way to see anybody. I have never seen fog or smoke so dense in my life.

"I came in at the tail end of it. Thank god, I was running 15 minutes early, or I would have been involved in the more serious [part]. I don't know if I would be here giving you this interview now."

Robert Barnes, 58, was in his Subaru station wagon, heading in to his job near Orlando from Lakeland at 5:30 a.m.

"I was going into work and there was a little fog, not much. All of the sudden I hit a wall of smoke and about two seconds later, after I jammed on the brakes to slow down, I hit a small pickup truck that had already hit another vehicle.

"I knew I was vulnerable to get really creamed, so grabbed my briefcase, phone, and jacket and just jumped out of there.

"I could not see. The fog and the smoke was that bad.

"Everything was starting to explode over there. Somebody said they were on fire. I tried to get as far off the road as I could. I headed to the fence and realized there was a rest stop back that way, so I walked back that way about a mile.

"I've been driving this four years, and never seen anything this bad.

"As soon as I got back, I called my wife and called into work."

Lonnie called into FOX 13's Your Turn to talk about witnessing the pileup that was happening right in front of him. He said he was "devastated" by the experience.

"I was inches away from being in the impact as well. It was as if a blanket fell from the sky and smothered the traffic instantly. There wasn't even enough time to respond to the situation.

"And then the bad part about it, the drivers behind did not even have enough time to put their four-way flashers on -- which is what I did to keep anybody else from rear-ending me.

"It just happened so quickly that really the drivers did not have enough time to respond to it." 1. City of Auburndale
2. City of Bartow
3. City of Davenport
4. Town of Dundee
5. City of Eagle Lake
6. City of Fort Meade
7. City of Frostproof
8. City of Haines City
9. Village of Highland Park
10. Town of Hillcrest Heights
11. City of Lake Alfred
12. Town of Lake Hamilton
13. City of Lakeland
14. City of Lake Wales
15. City of Mulberry
16. Town of Polk City
17. City of Winter Haven

[edit] Unincorporated * Babson Park * Brewster * Combee Settlement * Crooked Lake Park * Crystal Lake * Cypress Gardens * Fussels Corner * Gibsonia * Highland City * Homeland * Inwood * Jan Phyl Village * Kathleen * Lakeland Highlands * Loughman * Medulla * Nalcrest * Pittsburg * Poinciana * Wahneta * Waverly * Willow Oak * Winston

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• polk
• county
• fire
• crash
• interstate
• i4
• smoke
• fog
• legend813

[MotAdvNSW]

The US really needs to mandate the requirement for REAR FOG LAMPS.

These offer many seconds of additional warning compared to your vehicles standard taillights, which are rendered nearly useless in such conditions.

SAEJ1319/UNECE 38; for application to FMVSS108.

Indeed, both the US & Arab states need to consider this adoption, 'seriously'.

In the US, only *one* driver manual mentions rear fog lamps and when they should be used, and that is published by NY-DMV!

[janbonesplitter]

wtf happends to his face at 4-30: 4-40

amazing!:P

[NYjoshK1]

KRAZZZY shit right here

[garrett1329]

This makes me think about the crathersville tornada where we rained so hard we coulded see and a simi hit a billbord with a car I frount of it snd killed the people instently it happed about 200yards in frount of us we almost keept on going but then we Saw the turn and turned

[nerxboy]

@janbonesplitter hahahaha

[nerxboy]

gotta give credit for the fire department and the sherrif????? for what? taking them 5 hours to get that poor motherfucker out of that fucking mess? idiots.

[bresher]

whats with that mans face

[elementfreak1344]

they said the the fog came "out of now were" meaning a white out.

[pf126p]

There is a optical phenomenon driving in fog that you think you are moving much slower than you really are. What might have helped are rear fog lights, which, for this very reason, are required in Europe not only on all cars and trucks but also on trailers of any size.

[doslew]

did u no i-4 is haunted