Virginia Snow Storm Caused One Car Crash per Minute

A February snowstorm caused chaos on Virginia roads, resulting in well over a thousand car accidents and many calls to police. Virginia State Police responded to 1.31 car crashes per minute between 4 p.m. Wednesday, February 12, and 4 p.m. Thursday, February 13, WTVR reported. Over a foot of snow dumped on Washington, D.C., in that timeframe, and the initial storm was followed by another blast of winter precipitation that caused more headaches for Virginia travelers.

Despite warnings from authorities to avoid travel, Virginia State Police responded to more than 4,000 calls for service. The counties around Richmond were particularly hard hit, with state police responding to 745 emergency calls. Of those, 307 were due to auto crashes and 157 involved disabled vehicles.

Several significant vehicle collisions, including two fatal wrecks, took place during the storm, although it was not immediately certain that the snow caused them all. In addition, a crane fell off a flatbed truck after striking an overpass on I-95 in Henrico County near Richmond. WTVR reported that the crane fell on and crushed a car, whose driver, a 30-year-old Virginia Commonwealth University student, walked away unharmed. Police charged the truck driver with carrying an overly tall load.

Another significant traffic wreck occurred February 13 when a snowplow overturned in Highland Springs. The plow driver was not injured, but police closed travel lanes to investigate the cause of the rollover accident.

With well over a thousand crashes, Virginians will be sorting out insurance claims and responsibility for accidents and making auto repairs for weeks to come.

Hurt in a car crash? Contact a Richmond auto accident attorney from Geoff McDonald & Associates today.