Icy Surface Blamed For 30-Vehicle Freeway Pileup
ALGOMA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WWJ/AP) - A snowstorm pushing across Michigan's Lower Peninsula is being blamed for a 30-vehicle pileup that is forcing the closing of U.S. 131 north of Grand Rapids.
State police Sgt. Brian Keely told MLive.com that no major injuries are reported in the chain-reaction crash, which happened about 12:45 p.m. Tuesday in Kent County's Algoma Township near Rockford.
Keely blames the crash on rapidly forming ice on the expressway surface.
MLive.com says other accidents have been happening around Kent and Ottawa counties.
The National Weather Service says snow was falling in the Grand Rapids area at 3 p.m. Tuesday, with 17 mile-per-hour west winds and a 21-degree reading. It says snow was falling in a number of parts of the state, with temperatures ranging from the low teens to upper 20s.
In southeast Michigan, AccuWeather Meteorologist John Feerick says we can expect "bitterly cold" temperatures overnight Tuesday, down to 14 degrees — and Wednesday, down to 8 degrees.
Feerick said to expect flurries in Tuesday night and snow showers on Wednesday. Looking ahead, metro Detroit could three to five inches of snow over the weekend.
For the latest forecast, keep it tuned to WWJ Newsradio 950 during traffic and weather, every 10 minutes on the 8s. Check the live and local radar and the extended forecast now, at this link.
