CNY Truck Driver Lucky to Be Alive After Massive 12 Car Pileup in Upstate NY

A Central New York driver is lucky to be alive after being in the middle of a massive 12-car pileup in Upstate New York.

Jerry Sevey drives to the Watertown area for work and has been doing so for years. Wednesday, February 1 he drove through a storm like no other.

I’ve been driving up to Fort Drum for years in this weather, but I have never run into anything like this. It was a complete whiteout. You couldn’t see a thing.

Stopped in Nick of Time

Sevey came upon the accident on I-81 and managed to squeeze his vehicle between two tractor-trailers, sideswiping them both. He came to stop just before running into another semi that was across both lanes.

Luckily another tractor-trailer behind Sevey ran into a flatbed.

"If the flatbed was not there, he would’ve hit me I would’ve been sandwiched between him and the tractor-trailer crossing the lanes."

Interstate Closed

The South and Northbound lanes were closed to traffic between Arsenal Street (Exit 45) and Route 232 (Exit 44) Wednesday afternoon due to the accident that involved 12 vehicles, including four tractor-trailers.

Rescue Vehicles Get Stuck

The "Jaws of Life" and mutual aid were requested to help with the massive pileup. However, it took some time for help to arrive. Rescue vehicles became stuck before reaching the scene, according to Newzjunky.
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13 Injuries

13 people were injured in the pileup. Four were taken to the hospital. The rest suffered only minor injuries.

A school bus was brought in to help transport people from the area.

Chain Reaction

A tractor-trailer jackknifed in the southbound lane in the white conditions, causing a chain reaction, according to the Town of Watertown Fire Chief David Johnston.

See on The News Not Make the News

Sevey was uninjured in the crash and is thankful to be alive. "It was very scary. This is usually something you see on the news after it happens."