GALESBURG, Mich. (WZZM) -- I-94 is now open in both directions.
MDOT inspected the road and determined it is now safe for traffic. Eastbound I-94 at the 90 mile marker has some pitting in the cement from the vehicle fires, making the surface rough. There are signs to warn drivers.
RELATED: From the Michigan State Police news release: "Response to this event required a massive coordinated effort between state, local, and private entities.All response partners will be meeting in the very near future to debrief this incident, develop an after-action report, and compile lessons learned to better serve the community."
Also from MSP: "We cannot stress enough for people to drive with caution as they travel on winter roadways.Slower speeds and more distance is needed to respond to situations that may occur in front of drivers.Please drive careful and arrive safely at your destination."
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GALESBURG, Mich. (WZZM) -- According to the Michigan State Police Westbound I-94 is back open for travel. Eastbound I-94 is still closed for the removal of the remaining semis. The highway has been closed since Friday morning after an accident involving 193 vehicles. Police are urging motorist who travel through the area to use caution.
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GALESBURG, Mich. (WZZM) -- According to the Michigan State Police, the only vehicles that still need to be cleared from I-94 are two trucks in the west bound lanes and four trucks in the east bound lanes.
From an MSP news release: "The four trucks in the east bound lanes will take more time to clear as the hazardous materials contained in a wrecked tanker is proving difficult to offload.While the cold weather has helped keep the contents stable, it has also hindered the transfer process.Haz-Mat teams are evaluating."
After vehicles are cleared, MDOT will inspect the roadway for damages.
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GALESBURG, Mich. (WZZM) -- I-94 is still closed in both directions at the 90 mile-marker. Crews are working to remove vehicles from the scene of the pileup that involved nearly 200 vehicles Friday. One man died in the crash.
According to the Michigan State Police, a Haz-Mat team is offloading materials from a wrecked tanker. Vehicle removal will be delayed until that process is completed.
MSP estimates it will likely be several more hours before I-94 reopens. They tell us several semi-tractor-trailers are still tangled together making their removal difficult.
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GALESBURG, Mich. (WZZM) -- Nearly 200 vehicles crashed in the I-94 pile-up Friday morning. 76 of them were semis.
But while there was significant damage to the vehicles, the list of casualties was relatively low. 23 people taken by ambulance to nearby hospitals with what turned to be minor injuries. And one death. Truck driver Jean Baroque, 57, of St.-Chrysostome, Quebec was operating one of the last vehicle to crash into the wreckage.
"Came up on it and didn't see it," recalls Randy Packham, who says he witnessed the crash. "Didn't even have time to hit the brakes. There was a truck hauling cars and he hit the car trailer and it went up and through his cab. You could tell he didn't make it. A couple of guys looked but you couldn't get him out."
The truck driven by Baroque was one of 193 vehicles involved in a chain reaction crash near Galesburg on I-94. The vehicles began to pile up at about 9:30 a.m. Friday.
Police say roads were slick and blowing snow caused periods of poor visibility.
