3 dead in multi-vehicle collision on I-81 in Pennsylvania amid snow squall warnings

Three people dead following a massive pile-up on a Pennsylvania interstate, officials said Monday. The crash was reported just before 11 a.m. (local time) near Exit 116 of the icy interstate.

A video posted on social media showed several trucks and a number of smaller vehicles struck and at least one ablaze on I-81 in Schuykill County. 

The National Weather Service had warned of “numerous brief heavy snow squalls with very poor visibility.”

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“The squalls will quickly reduce the visibility to under one-half of a mile and coat the roads with snow,” forecasters said, urging drivers to get off the road if possible or turn on hazard lights “and gradually slow down to avoid a chain reaction vehicular accident.”

Early Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service warned drivers of a snow squall in parts of central Bucks and Montgomery counties in the Philadelphia suburbs. 

All lanes of I-81 were shut down for two hours due to the accident.

Emergency responders at the scene confirmed reports of fire at the crash site. Numerous aircraft were called to the nearby Schuylkill County Airport in response to the incident, local media reports said.

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The road – currently enveloped in ice – serves as a common route for those heading north to Canada or returning to the US.

It currently is unclear what what caused to the crash. However, the heavy snow in the area could have played a role.