1 killed in 70-car pile up that closed highway

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VAIL - Interstate 70 fully reopened Monday night, around nine hours after a 70-vehicle pile up near Vail Pass left one person dead and shut down the highway in both directions.

The Colorado State Patrol says the accidents started just before 1:30 p.m. near mile marker 189 on the west side of Vail Pass.

State Patrol opened up eastbound I-70 just after 8 p.m. and westbound reopened just before 10 p.m.

According to State Patrol, several people were seriously injured and at least one person was killed.

Vail Valley Medical Center spokesman Don Bishop says at least 16 people with broken bones, bruises, and scrapes were transported to the hospital, about 15 miles west of the scene. Except for one patient who was to undergo surgery, Bishop says all were in fair condition.

Six patients were transported to St. Anthony's Summit Medical Center near Breckenridge, about 20 miles away. Two women there were in critical condition, another woman and a boy were in serious condition. The other two patients were treated and discharged.

Their names were not immediately released.

Troopers say the crash began when a trucker in the westbound lanes lost control and slid broadside, blocking all of the lanes. A driver of a minivan could not stop and went underneath the semi. The driver of the minivan was the person who died.

"Then it was just one after another," said Master Trooper Ron Watkins with the Colorado State Patrol.

The number of vehicles involved was initially reported at 40, but on Monday night, the number jumped to 70.

"The weather conditions here on Vail Pass were just horrendous," said Watkins. "We had whiteout conditions, slick, icy, snowpacked roads, (and) poor, poor visibility."

"In my 31 years, I've probably seen this type of crash four to five times," added Watkins.

State Patrol closed westbound I-70 at Copper Mountain and closed eastbound I-70 at Eagle.

The closure left many drivers stranded on the road. Willie Rice, a truck driver from Oklahoma, says he sat on the highway for six hours.

"I will just be glad to get out of it. I'm not a snow man in the first place," said Rice.

Patricia Doran had gone skiing at Copper Mountain and was stuck on the bus heading to Frisco. Instead of waiting on the bus, she put her cross country skis back on and kept going to Frisco.

"I'd rather go home to my warm, cozy condo," said Doran.

Traffic was backed up for several miles due to the closures.

State Patrol is blaming adverse weather conditions for the multi-vehicle accident.

CDOT was asking drivers to stay off the roads as much as possible. The Vail Village and Lionshead parking structures were free Monday during the highway closure, according to CDOT.

Personnel from the town of Vail also helped stranded motorists turn around.

An emergency shelter was opened at the Vail Interfaith Chapel. The shelter is being staffed by the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross. For more information, call 970-479-2226.

In addition, The Inn at Beaver Creek and The Pines Lodge was offering a stranded traveler rate of $79 for Monday night only. Call 970-754-5998 or 800-859-8242, and select option 2 to make a reservation and reference the stranded traveler rate.

For current road conditions, listen to local radio or call the road condition line at 970-479-2226 or visit www.cotrip.org.