Slick roads, snow cause seven-car wreck
Police interview students caught in a seven-car wreck at the intersection of Duquesne and Newman Roads. No injuries were reported and no ambulance was called to the scene. Some students think the College should have closed down due the inclimate weather.
Seven cars found themselves in a fix the morning of Jan. 16 as they couldn’t help sliding on the pavement.
On the corner of Duquense and Newman roads, the ice caused several cars to receive fender benders.
In her green Contour, Heather Asbell, sophomore education major, was on her way to class from Carthage when she noticed a white car sitting on top the embankment by the traffic light. She said she decided to slow down, but her tires would only spin.
“It was just pure ice,” she said.
As she tried to stop, she over corrected and slid into the ditch. A white 4×4 pickup couldn’t stop either and hit Asbell’s vehicle as it also slid off the road.
Travis Housh, junior business major, was the driver of the pickup. He is also from Carthage and was on his way to class when he found himself in the middle of a pileup. He said a green Explorer slammed into his bumper and another car hit him in the side.
Asbell said it was weird to watch the three cars around her all start colliding. The action wasn’t over yet. Not long after the initial accident, a red two-door car and a Camaro ran into each other and also ended up in the ditch.
Housh said no one was injured and no ambulance was called, but three police cars did come to the scene.
He said he used to be of the opinion that “you should be your own judge” when it comes to driving in bad weather. However, after sustaining an estimated $5,500 in damage to his truck because of the icy road, he now thinks the College should either close class or be more lenient on those who can’t make it.
Asbell said many other schools in the area closed on Thursday, and she doesn’t understand why Southern stayed open.
“I think it would give ’em some hint that maybe they should be closed,” she said.
“Whoever makes the decision to cancel classes should take it into deeper consideration.”
Housh agreed and noted the large number of commuters who go to the College. Southern should “think about it more” when it comes to canceling class in icy weather, he said.
Justin Cleaveland, sophomore education major, doesn’t think the College should have canceled class on Jan. 16, but last semester when the weather was worse, he thinks it “absolutely” should have closed.
“I think they’ll wait for someone to get hurt before they do anything,” he said.
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