UPDATE: Ice wreaks havoc for area motorists

By Brandi Watters and Aleasha Sandley, Herald Bulletin staff reporters

December 02, 2008 07:16 am

— ANDERSON — A thick layer of black ice formed over Madison County roadways Monday afternoon, causing a string of accidents that lit up the 911 dispatch lines and kept emergency responders busy for hours. At least 32 accidents in seven hours were reported.
Anderson police reported 23 accidents within city limits within five hours.
North of Anderson, Richland Township firefighters had to use extrication tools to free two Alexandria teens from their overturned Jeep Grand Cherokee just after 5:30 p.m.. Monday on Indiana 9 near County Road 500 North.
The teens became trapped in the vehicle when the driver, Christopher McCurry, 17, attempted to change lanes while heading northbound on Ind. 9, according to Madison County Sheriff Ron Richardson.
The vehicle spun out of control and crossed into a southbound lane where it struck a 1996 Lincoln Continental driven by Thomas House, 62, of Anderson.
After rear-ending House’s car, McCurry crashed into a ditch and the jeep landed on its side, trapping McCurry and his passenger, 13-year-old Katlyn Mesalam, inside.
Mesalam and House were treated for lacerations and released but McCurry was admitted to Community Hospital for head contusions.
Emergency responders at the scene of the crash included personnel from Richland Township and Frankton fire departments and the Madison County Emergency Management Agency.
Richland Township Fire Chief Bryan Frank said Indiana 9 is notorious for its black ice due to its elevation.
At the accident site, the roadway was covered in what Frank called a “solid sheet of ice” that covered both north and southbound lanes.
A string of smaller accidents kept roadways jammed with emergency vehicles as temperatures dropped Monday afternoon.
Richardson said county officials responded to their first weather-related accident at 2:21 p.m. at Indiana 236 and County Road 450 East. Although personal injury was reported at the scene, Richardson was unable to supply specific details about the crash at press time.
Just 45 minutes later, a separate crash occurred at Indiana 13 and County Road 1700 North when a vehicle lost control and hit a mailbox.
Five minutes later, a crash on County Road 500 West, between County Road 1000 and County Road 1100 North, sent two Frankton teens to Community Hospital.
Richardson said 16-year-old Coty Prince and his passenger, Zacchary Claybaugh, 16, were headed north on County Road 500 West in a 2006 Chevrolet Colorado and moved to the side of the road to avoid oncoming traffic. The vehicle’s wheel dropped off the side of the road, he said; Prince overcorrected and veered across the lanes into a utility pole. Frankton and Pipe Creek emergency responders transported both teens to Community Hospital where they were treated for head and neck pain.
At 4:38, a vehicle slid off the road at Indiana 128 and County Road 700 West.
Two additional accidents occurred at Indiana 32 and County Road 200 East, and on West State Street in Pendleton but drivers and passengers involved in both wrecks did not need to be transported to the hospital, Richardson said.
John Kinley of Anderson Emergency Management said several accidents occurred at bridges and overpasses in town due to heavy ice that accumulated over the evening hours.
Eisenhower, Madison Avenue and Broadway bridges were all closed temporarily Monday night to allow city crews a chance to salt and scrap ice from the bridges.
Kinley said motorists also faced slick surfaces while attempting to drive up inclines and hills on city streets but all accidents in the city caused by weather resulted in minor injuries and property damage.
Officials in Alexandria, Elwood and Pendleton reported minor accidents involving vehicles sliding off the road or none at all.
Chesterfield Police Chief James Kimm said two accidents occurred just outside of town limits due to slick roadways. In both cases, drivers escaped without injury.
On Monday night, Kinley said road conditions took a turn for the worse as the afternoon came to a close. “The temperature was just above freezing before the sun went down. That’s what kept the road slick-free. When the sun went down, the roads instantly froze and we still had light snow which caused the roads to freeze quick at overpasses.”
Kinley said motorists should expect similar conditions as winter rolls in. “We’re getting into the time of year where the weather can change rapidly.”
Blowing snow that covered county roads like a sheet of fog also caused problems for motorists as road visibility diminished.
By 8:30 p.m. Monday, Kinley was confident that road crews were getting the city’s main arteries clear of ice and blowing snow.
Scott Harless of the Madison County Highway Department said some shifts could send as many as 12 plow and salt trucks onto county roads during severe weather conditions.
This was not one of those shifts. Four trucks canvassed county roads as temperatures plunged and roads froze over. “We usually just have four when it’s hit-and-miss like this.”
In all, The Herald Bulletin confirmed 32 ice-related accidents across the county in a seven-hour span, but Mitch Carroll of the Anderson Police Department said that did not include accidents that were not reported to police.

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