MANCHAC, La. — Editor's note: On Friday, Oct. 27, Louisiana State Police reduced the number of victims to seven fatalities rather than eight following a forensic investigation.
At least 158 vehicles were involved in a fatal crash that occurred over a one-mile stretch on Interstate 55 near Manchac, La., that claimed the lives of at least seven people and injured 25 or more on Monday morning.
At the time, the roadway was very busy due to morning rush hour.
WWL-TV spoke to one family that spent most of the day stuck on the bridge.
Bailey Scott and her dad left Mandeville early in the morning to catch a flight at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and was using I-55 after the Causeway closed due to a combination of heavy fog and smoke from nearby wildfires.
“I was like, alright dad we need to go the other way, so I can make my flight,” Scott told WWL-TV’s Lily Cummings. “You couldn't see 5-10 yards in front of you because of this fog, and then out of nowhere this big FedEx truck was in front of us. We had to swerve out of the way, like the brakes were screeching."
The LSP say there were three clusters of crashes on the I-55 bridge.
“That was a result of fog combined with smoke from the wildfires in New Orleans," explained LSP Sgt. Kate Stegall, who said calls on the crash began pouring in at 9 a.m. “There was one vehicle that went over the railing and into the water. Thankfully, that driver was able to get out of that vehicle."
The LSP also said there were two fires, including one involving the cab of a tanker truck.
It's unknown what material it was hauling, but Stegall said it was hazardous during a LSP press conference Monday evening.
“I do know that it was not a material that was hazardous to the air,” said Sgt. Stegall.
As traffic backed up for miles in all directions, help came rushing in from across the region.
"First responders, state troopers, parish cops, it's just a blessing to have as many as we have to respond to this," recounted Carla Birch-Day, who arrived at the scene praying her family was alright.
“Whenever I saw it, I wanted to go berserk driving because you don't think that they can survive something like this."
She says her family was OK, but others were not.
Scott is an ICU nurse at Lakeview Hospital and she rushed to help.
“There were people stuck in their cars,” she explained. “First of all, just trying to get the doors unlocked. None of the ambulances or EMTs were here yet. We saw a lot of concussions. People had broken arms and legs."
Scott says an hour passed before first responders could reach the victims.
And although she missed her flight, she's thankful she could help.
“I'm just glad that we're okay,” said Scott, who along with her father were on the bridge for more than five hours before being able to drive away. “And I pray for the people that did get injured."
Officials announced it will be at least 24 hours before the bridge reopens again due to necessary inspections of the roadway which must be conducted by Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development inspectors during daylight hours.
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