The first three wrecks occurred on Interstate 57 just north of the Boone Street Overpass where both the north and southbound lanes froze solid for a short distance. While there were initially fears of injuries and possible entrapment, Salem Fire Department personnel that responded to the scene say that turned out not to be the case. One car spun around and ended up in the median, a second slid into a sign, and a third hit a guard rail.
The sheriff's department was notified of 13 other accidents as Friday evening progressed. Only one of those resulted in injuries. In that wreck, a car driven by 26-year-old Amber Statler of Louis Road in Venedy ran off the Route 161 Extension near the Pleasant Grove Church in rural Iuka and rolled over. Kell Firemen were called to the scene to assist Statler until ambulance personnel arrived to take her to the hospital for treatment.
Of the other wrecks, six occurred on U.S. 51 in the Patoka area. Other cars left U.S. 51 south of Centralia and south of Sandoval, on Route 161 east of Centralia, at Brewery Hill and Green Street Road, on Selmaville Road, and on U.S. 50 west of Salem near RP Lumber.
Centralia Police reported both the McCord Street and U.S.51 overpass on the city's south side both turned to solid sheets of ice preventing vehicles from being able to make it up the inclines. Both were closed briefly so salt trucks could treat the road surface and get rid of the film of ice. Salem Police reported no accidents blamed on the icy road conditions.
By Saturday morning, road conditions had largely returned to normal, with just scattered slippery spots. full story
