Major snowstorm hits Illinois, Indiana, causes traffic mayhem

Feb. 18 (UPI) -- A winter storm blanketing Illinois and Indiana Thursday and Friday left motorists on two roadways stranded in cars for hours, with one described as a 100-vehicle pile-up, and two highways shut down for hours as a result.

Both pile-ups come as the Chicago metropolitan area received a heavy blast of snow, with the highest snowfall seen in parts of northwest Indiana, according to ABC-7 Chicago.

A nearly 30-mile stretch of highway I-39 between Minonk, Ill., and Normal, Ill., was closed for 12 hours on Friday after over 100 cars were involved in multiple car crashes on Thursday.

The crashes occurred around 3:30 p.m. local time Thursday, with Illinois State Police closing the stretch of highway from Minonk, which is near Bloomington, 28 miles north to Normal.

With more snow expected in the area today, officials warned of whiteout conditions and a slow commute, as efforts to clear the roads were likely to be slow, and made slower by traffic.

The other crash, on I-65 in Illinois north of Bloomington, happened as weather conditions were linked to jackknifed semis and a series of other crashes.

Indiana State Police Sargent Glen Fifield said some motorists had been trapped in the 8-mile backup for eight or nine hours.

"It's been a rough 24 hours for us," Fifield told NBC-5 Chicago. "We continue to have crashes and jackknife semis and our troopers are very busy -- and our particular area of concern is on I-65."

Indiana State Police said Friday they'd rescued several drivers and got tow trucks to the scene as quickly as possible, with all lanes back open around 1:33 p.m. local time.

Fifield said travel conditions are still hazardous, warning that road salt has been ineffective because of low temperatures and warned that anybody traveling should be prepared to get stranded.