6 killed in massive Texas pileup

Houston, Feb 12 (IANS) At least six people were killed in a massive pileup along an icy highway in the US state of Texas, according to media reports.According to reports by the local KXAS-TV and Dallas Morning News, about 100 vehicles were involved in the pileup that took place on Thursday on the interstate highway north of downtown Fort Worth, reports Xinhua news agency.Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman Michael Drivdahl said that besides the victims, 36 people were also injured in the accident.Rescue crews continued to assist at the multiple accident scenes, searching injured people vehicle by vehicle."We are working through front to back, back to front, making sure that every driver, every person in every car is accounted for," Drivdahl told reporters.A video posted on social media showed that dozens of vehicles piled up on the road, with several 18-wheelers and tractor-trailers involved. Some vehicles were crushed in the pileup and badly damaged.Hazardous conditions brought on by freezing rain and sleet was blamed to be a factor in the crashes. Also in Austin, 100 miles to the south of the accident site, there was a massive pileup along a busy road involving at least 26 vehicles, according to the Austin American Statesman.A winter weather advisory is in effect in parts of North Texas as the National Weather Service said freezing rain and sleet would continue.
--IANS ksk/