TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Whiteout conditions caused several major crashes Friday.
Just before noon, the Bowling Green dispatch of the highway patrol reported a multiple vehicle pileup on northbound I-75 just north of the State Route 582 exit.
Traffic was at a complete stand still as dozens of first responders and tow trucks tried to clean up the complicated scene.
According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol six commercial vehicles and fifteen passenger vehicles were involved.
Three people riding in passenger vehicles were seriously injured and three others suffered from minor injuries.
All six were taken to the hospital.
During the crash, an excavator that was being hauled came loose from the trailer it was on.
It is still unknown what led to the crash exactly but there was heavy snowfall at the time.
The Ohio State Highway Patrol confirms the scene was finally cleared up a little after 3 p.m.
Later in the evening a semi-truck crashed on northbound I-75 near Collingwood in Toledo.
Toledo police confirmed the truck jack-knifed, covering multiple lanes.
Police closed all but one lane to clean up the scene. Those lanes have since reopened.
Around the same time, a crash near Wales Rd. in Northwood caused traffic to back up on the southbound lanes of I-75.
Ross Echler, the workzone traffic coordinator for ODOT wants to let drivers know that even though it is late in the winter driving season, folks on the road need to know how to react to sudden changes in road conditions like we had today.
"We need to make sure that drivers give lots of room between others. Slow down, make sure you're using your wipers, turn your headlights on, turn your hazards on, and give plenty of room. Speeds will have to decrease to provide safe travel in a white out condition," said Ross Echler.
A different type of emergency stopped traffic in Monroe County north of Dundee.
US-23 was closed in both directions for much of the afternoon due to a downed power line. However, that road has since reopened.
The conditions may have caused another accident involving a semi-tractor trailer rig on the Ohio Turnpike at mile-marker 34 near Wauseon, with resulting back ups.
Jon Monk pulled over on I-75 at the 582 exit to give you a live look at the whiteout conditions.
