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Authorities say two people were killed and nine others were injured in a 35-car pileup on a foggy California highway.
Crews responded to the southbound side of Interstate 5 near Millux and Old River Roads on Saturday after learning that a multi-vehicle crash had occurred "in fog," according to the California Department of Transportation.
Kern County Fire Department Battalion Chief Jim Calhoun said 35 vehicles — 17 passenger cars and 18 semi trucks — were involved in the crash around 7:30 a.m. local time, according to NBC affiliate KGET-TV and CBS affiliate KBAK-TV.
Two people were pronounced dead, while nine others were hospitalized with what KGET-TV reported as minor injuries.
The KCFD and California Highway Patrol did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
The scene of the crash was “chaotic” when crews arrived, Calhoun said, per KBAK-TV.
"Everybody just started screaming for help, just like that, and there were little kids as well crying," said Yesenia Cruz, one of nearly three dozen drivers involved in the crash.
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Several bystanders found themselves inside “a plume of natural gas” after a number of “compressed natural gas” tanks located on some of the semi trucks ruptured, Calhoun said.
“So we had to deal with that first and get everyone evacuated from that area,” the fire chief added.
The scene of the massive crash spanned nearly a half mile, according to KGET-TV and CW affiliate KTLA.
One body reportedly could not be reached until about 5:30 p.m., about 10 hours after the crash, KGET-TV reported.
CHP Buttonwillow Public Information Officer Manny Garcia said visibility was “approximately 100 feet at the time” of the crash, according to KBAK-TV. However, KGET-TV reported that authorities said visibility was at just 10 feet when they arrived at the scene.
The heavy fog is believed to have caused the crash, per the reports.
Interstate 5 was closed for much of the day Saturday while crews cleaned up the scene and investigated the crash, according to California officials.
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