Series Of 3 Crashes Shuts Down Section Of I-75

PINCONNING (WWJ) - I-75 was shut down in both directions Monday in Bay County due a series of accidents.

The freeway was closed on the northbound side at Linwood, Exit 173, and on the soutbound side between Pinconning and Linwood for a couple of hours.

Michigan State Police Sgt. Gary Thomas said it was a chain-reaction situation that began on the northbound side, just south of Pinconning.

"It's my understanding that there was an accident, which was fairly severe, and then as the traffic starts to slow behind it, there were two additional smaller, fender-bender accidents," Thomas said.

One of the vehicles in the original collision ended up on the southbound side of the freeway, saidThomas, adding that he's not sure how badly anyone was injured in any of the three crashes.

Thomas said the roadway was "clear and dry" at the time of these crashes. It's unclear what might have caused the initial accident, but if he were to take a guess:"Distracted driving, people not paying attention, and traveling too fast."

Motorists were urged to avoid the area, using M-13 as an alternate, before both sides of the freeway reopened to traffic at around 1 p.m.

An investigation is ongoing.

More information on injuries is expected to be released later in the day.

For the latest from the roads, stay with WWJ Newsradio 950 during Traffic and Weather on the 8s, 24-hours a day. Check for recent incidents now on the CBS Detroit Traffic Page.