On February 28, 1975, at 7:40 a.m., P.d.t., the first of a series of multiple-vehicle collisions occurred on State Route 91 near Corona, California. The collisions occurred in fog. Personnel of the California Highway Patrol had started to escort some vehicles through the fog in convoys when the collisions occurred. The vehicles in the convoys were not involved in the serious collisions. The highway was closed for about 4 hours. There were no fatalities. Twenty-three persons were injured, 6 of whom were hospitalized. About 60 automobiles and 24 commercial-trucks were involved. Fire began when a truck struck an automobile. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the collisions was the penetration of vehicles into fog at speeds which were too high for the visibility conditions. The drivers had no advance information to warn them of the fog's severity and a reduced speed limit had not been posted. NTSB recommends: As a result of the investigation of this accident, the National Transportation Safety Board submitted recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (See Appendix B.) and to the State of California. (See Appendix C).
Abstract