SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, Pa. — Many of the people involved in the chain-reaction crash on Interstate 81 on Monday say their vehicles were totaled in the crash. Even so, they know they are lucky to be alive.
A responding state police trooper was one of many involved in this morning's pile-up.
"A trooper ... was initially dispatched up here, and he was involved in a crash. He's being taken via one of our police vehicles to the hospital to get checked out," said Trooper David Beohm, a public information officer with the Pennsylvania State Police.
State police believe the snow squall caused low visibility on the roads leading to this crash. Because of the severity of the pile-up, all first responders in Schuylkill County are working together.
"There's multiple agencies, fire companies. This is a big effort here to get all this fire out. There's no hydrants up here, so they have to bring water up here," Trooper Beohm explained.
The Red Cross is helping those stranded.
"The stuck-in-traffic people are being taken to Wegman's down here in the industrial park by the Schuylkill Transportation Service, and eventually, they're going to be a reunification location. It's going to be the Goodwill Fire Company in Minersville."
There is an on-scene rehab for the crews helping people still trapped on the interstate.
WARNING: The video below contains intense video, graphic language.