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One dead, several injured after dense fog leads to massive 280-vehicle pileup on bridge

According to witnesses, visibility on the bridge, which links the Chinese cities of Zhengzhou and Xinxiang, was as low as 65 feet

HENAN, CHINA: Intense fog led to a massive crash and a 200-vehicle pile-up in central China on Wednesday, December 28, according to local authorities. Images of the multilane Zhengxin Huanghe Bridge, a significant crossing linking the cities of Zhengzhou and Xinxiang in the Henan Province, showed cars and trucks stranded sideways on the road.

The bridge was later closed to traffic for several hours by local police, according to Daily Mail. Footage shared on Weibo, Twitter, and other social media showed terrified drivers and passengers stepping on top of cars to view the damage after hundreds of vehicles rear-ended one another owing to poor visibility. Zhengzhou traffic police said the pileup happened at around 7.40 am local time on the southbound part of the Zhengxin Huanghe Bridge. Authorities believed between 280 and 290 automobiles were involved in the crash. According to the emergency services, injured drivers and passengers were brought to nearby hospitals for treatment. 

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Meanwhile, according to China's state media, the pileup claimed at least one life. Emergency services also confirmed to Chinese media that no hazardous materials were involved in the crash. Witnesses told local media that the several collisions at the busy intersection were caused by dense fog and icy roadways. According to them, visibility on the bridge was as low as 65 feet. Just after 3 pm local time, authorities announced the reopening of northbound traffic, but at the time of writing, they are still removing debris from the southbound stretch. 

State media reported that 13 fire engines and more than 70 firefighters had been deployed, with a large-scale operation underway to separate cars and rescue drivers. The Zhengzhou police ordered motorists to take alternate routes and did not give a timetable for when regular movement would resume. The Zhengxin Huanghe Bridge is located above the Yellow River, the second-longest in China, that has a number of crossings bridging its banks. As of 8 am on Wednesday, December 28, Henan's weather agency reported that visibility in certain regions, including the provincial capital Zhengzhou, was below 650 feet. 

According to a post on its social media account, the local traffic police also briefly halted at least half a dozen additional routes due to fog. A similar pileup caused by dense fog in Henan had resulted in nine fatalities and 18 injuries in 2018. Authorities reported that 28 trucks collided with one another in the collision on the Daqing-Guangzhou Expressway in Pingyu province. In November 2016, another event involving heavy fog ended in a major pileup involving dozens of vehicles in China's northern province of Shanxi. 17 people were killed in the accident, the country's state media reported at the time.