Bystanders Fight Plume of Natural Gas to Rescue Motorists in Massive Pileup on California Highway
First responders believe that foggy weather conditions may have played a role in the dramatic scale of the accident
Bystanders braved a plume of natural gas in an attempt to save drivers stuck in a deadly pileup on a California highway, according to authorities.
Two people were killed and nine others were injured Saturday in the 35 vehicle pileup in Bakersfield, which included 18 tractor trailers.
“It was pretty chaotic when I first pulled up at the scene,” Kerns County Fire Department Battalion Chief Jim Calhoun told KBAK.
“It was compressed natural gas, saddle tanks on the side of some the big rigs that were ruptured, so a lot of the bystanders that weren't injured were trying to help people and were in a plume of natural gas," said Calhoun. "So we had to deal with that first and get everyone evacuated from that area."
First responders believe that foggy weather conditions may have played a role in the dramatic scale of the accident on Interstate 5.
"All the witnesses have fog visibility at approximately 100 feet at the time, so there was heavy fog at the time of the collision," California Highway Patrol Officer Manny Garcia told KBAK.
One driver involved in the crash said that the accidents occurred suddenly, adding to the chaos of the situation.
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"Our GPS notified us that there was an accident and so we stopped, and two minutes after we stopped, the car behind us hit us, and that's when everything just happened fast," Yesenia Cruz told KBAK.
"Everybody just started screaming for help, just like that, and there were little kids as well crying.”
The southbound side of Interstate 5 was closed in the area for the remainder of Saturday but reopened by Sunday afternoon.
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