Whiteout Conditions Lead to Fatal Multi-Vehicle Pileup on I-79

A 22-year-old man died in Pennsylvania Thursday morning during whiteout conditions on Interstate 79, after colliding with a semi-truck in Jackson Township.

The accident was part of a chain-reaction crash that left another person hospitalized and temporarily shut down the busy highway.

Austin Golab of Erie was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, Mercer County Coroner John A. Libonati confirmed to NTD. The crash occurred around 11:45 a.m. near milemarker 122 on I-79 South, according to Pennsylvania State Police.

Golab sustained blunt force trauma to the head and chest, Libonati said.

Treacherous weather conditions set the stage for the multi-vehicle collision. Pennsylvania State Police reported that whiteout conditions blanketed the interstate at the time of the crash, with snow covering the roadway. Visibility was severely compromised, making safe navigation nearly impossible for drivers traveling through the area.

Speaking to numerous outlets, state police said a semi-truck had come to rest in the right lane after traffic ahead had come to a complete stop. A second semi-truck then collided with the rear of that stationary truck and slid into the left lane. Moments later, a third vehicle, the one driven by Golab, struck the rear end of the second semi-truck’s trailer, sustaining extensive damage to both its front and driver’s side.

Pennsylvania State Police have not yet identified the type of vehicle Golab was driving.

A person traveling in the second semi-truck was taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries sustained in the crash. Specific details about the extent of those injuries have not been released.

Seven people were transported to area hospitals following that collision, which occurred around 2:20 p.m. Two of those injured sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to New York State Police.