Photo: Getty

car pile up

A portion of an Illinois highway has been shut down after a winter storm hit the area, which led to a pileup involving over 100 cars.

Interstate 39, which runs from Illinois to Wisconsin, has been closed in both directions in the state between the cities of Normal and Minonk as of Friday morning, according to theIllinois Department of Transportation.

“It is not expected to reopen until roughly midday today,” the organization said in astatementshared on social media.

The decision to shut the roadway came about aftermore than 100 vehiclescrashed on Thursday, throughout a 30-mile stretch of the interstate, perThe Washington Post.

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A winter storm traveled across the nation on Thursday and into Friday morning, leaving many areas “under threat of severe thunderstorms, tornadoes, heavy snow and flooding,” per thePost.

At the time of the weather event, local police warned residents against traveling. “Troopers are currently working diligently to get everyone off the roadway safely and as quickly as possible,” an officer said in avideoshared online. “We’re asking everyone to avoid the area. Please do not travel unless it is an emergency.”

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Videos posted on social media show the snow-covered highway and the pile-up of vehicles on the roadway.

In onevideoshared on Facebook, David Troesser shows his vehicle, as well as others, trapped on the snowy road as he pleads for others to remain off the interstate.

“Oh my God, there’s more. They’re just piling up,” he says in the minutes-long clip. “It’s getting bad, y’all.”

source: people.com