GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Authorities have reopened the northbound lanes of Interstate 75 near Gainesville nearly 14 hours after a pileup in the pre-dawn darkness left at least 10 people dead.
The northbound lanes were reopened at around 5:30 p.m. EST Sunday. The southbound lanes remained closed Sunday evening.
A long line of cars and trucks collided one after another early Sunday on a highway stretch so shrouded in haze and smoke that drivers were instantly blinded.
Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup south of Gainesville on I-75, which was closed for a time before the accidents due to a mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire that may have been intentionally set. At least a dozen cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flames.
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Associated Press Writer Freida Frisaro in Miami contributed to this report.
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