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2 dead in 18-vehicle pileup on Pennsylvania highway

In this photo provided by exploreClarion.com/Bauer Truck Repair, vehicles remain at the scene of a fatal 18-vehicle pileup that occurred in whiteout conditions Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015, on Interstate 80 near Clarion, Pa. State police said that two people who died were struck after exiting their vehicles at the scene. The victims' identities were not being released until families could be notified. (AP Photo/exploreClarion.com/Bauer Truck Repair) In this photo provided by exploreClarion.com/Bauer Truck Repair, vehicles remain at the scene of a fatal 18-vehicle pileup that occurred in whiteout conditions Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2015, on Interstate 80 near Clarion, Pa. State police said that two people who died were struck after exiting their vehicles at the scene. The victims' identities were not being released until families could be notified. (AP Photo/exploreClarion.com/Bauer Truck Repair)

By Associated Press January 8, 2015 1 min read

CLARION, Pa. (AP) – Two people have died and nearly two dozen have been injured in an 18-vehicle pileup during a whiteout on a highway in western Pennsylvania.

The chain reaction crash happened Wednesday afternoon on Interstate 80 in Clarion Township. State police say nine trucks, several of them tractor-trailers, and nine cars were involved in the crash in the highway’s westbound lanes.

The two people died after leaving their vehicles. The county coroner says one was struck and the other collapsed and died of internal injuries while looking for his children, who had been ejected. The children were found unharmed.

About 20 others were taken to a hospital, three of them with serious injuries. The rest were being treated for injuries ranging from bumps to broken bones.