NEW ORLEANS — Wednesday morning, parts of southeast Louisiana looked like it was snowing as the fog coupled with the smoke from a nearby fire, created a thick white haze. Drivers said they were extremely worried.
“Scared to death,” one driver said. “You get to a point where you cannot see literally a foot in front of you.”
Drivers commuting across I-10 said they were proceeding with extreme caution. At some points they were stalled and rerouted as NOPD closed stretches of I-10, I-510 and US 11. While Wednesday’s conditions were similar to Tuesday’s, Wednesday’s response was much different. No crashes or injuries were reported.
“All parties are focused on this, it is a priority. And life safety is number one. So if conditions render themselves to be very dangerous in terms of life of loss of life, make no mistake about it, the officials will make the right decision,” Mayor Cantrell said Wednesday.
DOTD said officers and Motorists Assistance patrolled the area and put up barricades. The swift change in response came after a meeting that was held Tuesday afternoon with multiple agencies. DOTD said drivers may see a similar response in the near future as these conditions are likely to arise again.
“Certainly we’re very proud and excited by the effort of New Orleans Police Department and our MAP assistance patrol that was out there,” Scott Boyle with DOTD said. “We’re very relieved about that but there are these re ongoing concerns that we are going to have to monitor.”
DOTD and NOPD advise drivers to proceed with extra caution during heavy fog. They ask drivers to please slow down, increase the space between you and the person in front of you.
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