【Text/Observer Network Wang Mochu】
Some California drivers encountered an overwhelming "ketchup spectacle" on their commute Monday morning.
According to a number of US media reports, on Monday (29th) local time, a truck sprinkled more than 150,000 tomatoes on Interstate 80 in California, usa, causing 7 cars to collide and 4 people to be injured. To this end, the relevant personnel had to close most of the road section of the road on the same day to clean up the site.
Pictured from The Associated Press
On the 29th local time, the official account of the Solano District Highway Patrol in California tweeted, "A large truck transporting tomatoes crashed into the central isolation belt." Near the Alamo in Vacaville, several lanes are closed. Avoid this area, take alternative routes, and be safe to drive.
Combined with CNN, NPR, The New York Times and other media reports, the accident occurred at about 5 a.m. that day.
California Highway Patrol Jason Tyhurst said a large truck carrying tomatoes collided with another car and turned, crashed into a third car and then drove into the central divider, leaving the truck carrying more than 150,000 tomatoes scattered on the road.
Patrol Officer Tyhurst said fist-sized tomatoes covered the eastbound lanes of the interstate highway and covered lengths of up to 200 feet (about 61 meters), forming a red hill that appeared to be "two feet high" (60 centimeters). He added that he was not exaggerating the scale.
Drivers driving on the road in the early morning reportedly drove straight past the tomatoes, crushing them into ketchup, which was then mixed with oil and dirt to become a sticky substance, making the road slippery.
"When those tomato skins touch the asphalt, it makes it feel like walking on ice," the highway patrol said.
These tomatoes quickly caused a chain reaction. Patrol Officer Tyhurst said that one car got stuck on the slippery road, and then was rear-ended by another car, and then two more cars crashed into it.
In the end, a total of 7 vehicles were involved in the crash, including the truck driver, 3 people were slightly injured, and 1 person was taken to the hospital with a broken leg.
To that end, the California Highway Patrol closed nearly all lanes on both sides of Interstate 80, paralyzing traffic and forcing large numbers of early morning commuters to face tardiness.
According to the Los Angeles Times, transportation department workers worked for hours to remove a huge number of tomatoes from the highway, which reopened six hours after the crash.
Pictured from the California Patrol
When the California Patrol updated its official Twitter update on the progress of cleaning up the "ketchup" on the highway, a comment read, "Bring fries [when cleaning up]."
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