JELLICO, Tenn. – Tennessee state police say a juvenile was seriously injured and others were hurt when blinding snow and fog contributed to a string of crashes along a three-mile stretch of Interstate 75 near Jellico.
The eight crashes were original reported by Campbell County dispatch as a chain-reaction pileup that involved 10 to 15 vehicles including several tractor-trailers and a Greyhound bus.
Tennessee Highway Patrol Sgt. Stacy Heatherly said the crashes were reported in the northbound lanes of I-75 shortly before 2 p.m. Sunday in near "white-out" conditions caused by heavy snowfall and fog.
A Campbell County dispatcher said emergency crews checked out dozens of people and at least seven were sent to hospitals. He said no one on the bus was hurt.
Heatherly could not confirm the number of injuries, but said several people were sent to the hospital.
Snow began falling in parts of Middle and East Tennessee early Sunday afternoon.
Kate Guillett, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Morristown, said up to five inches of snow had been reported near the scene of the crash, though most areas of East Tennessee had received two to three inches by late afternoon.
She said snow would continue to fall through the evening, with another inch of accumulation possible overnight.
Trevor Boucher, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Nashville, said snow showers in Middle Tennessee were expected to taper off later Sunday. He said that some areas could expect slight accumulation, but it was expected to be less than an inch in Nashville.
The weather service was also predicting several inches of snow to fall on parts of Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina. The storm was the product of a low pressure system that moved northeast from the Gulf Coast states as well as cold air from the North. It was expected to move off the Mid-Atlantic coast on Sunday night.
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