2 victims identified in pile-up of 133 cars in Fort Worth that killed 6 people

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Two of the victims of the Fort Worth accident on Thursday, which involved more than 100 cars and killed at least six people, were identified.

Aaron Luke Watson, 45, and Tiffany Louann Gerred, 34, are among the victims of the accident on Thursday, according to the Tarrant County coroner’s office.

Both died at 6:13 am, according to the coroner’s office. Their causes of death are pending.

Thursday’s pileup was the most impressive of the accidents that spread the slippery ice roads through Dallas-Fort Worth throughout the day.

The accident, which was reported shortly after 6 am, occurred on the TEXPress runways south of Interstate 35W, north of downtown, said Fort Worth fire chief Jim Davis.

Authorities said 133 vehicles were involved, and the accident extended 800 meters between Northeast 28th Street and Northside Drive.

The accident closed all roads north of I-35W on Thursday, including toll roads, with traffic halted in both directions from Interstate 30 to Interstate 820, Fort Worth police said.

At around 6:30 am on Friday, the ramps on the north loop of Interstate 820 to the south of I-35W were still closed for the investigation of the accident.

A total of 65 people were treated at hospitals in the region on Thursday for injuries related to the accident, but that number is expected to increase as more people seek help, MedStar spokesman Matt Zavadsky said. None of the treaties was a child.

Zavadsky said that a large number of people involved in the accident were health professionals wearing hospital aprons and badges.

Four Fort Worth policemen were hospitalized as a result of the accident, said chief Neil Noakes. Three were on their way to work and one was injured while helping on the spot. All four were discharged from the hospital.

In the early hours of Friday morning, fewer accidents were reported across the area. Many school districts in North Texas again chose to postpone openings or move on to online learning on Friday due to bad weather.

COVID-19 vaccine center operations

Dallas County: Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said the county’s Fair Park vaccination center would be open with limited hours on Friday, from 2 pm to 7 pm

At 9 pm on Thursday, the county health department said in a tweet that on Friday the center will only vaccinate people who will receive the second dose. Only people who were scheduled for their second doses Monday through Thursday will be seen at the center, the county said.

People who were due to receive their second dose on Friday will be rejected if they show up today, the county said. If time permits, the county said it would reopen on Sunday to vaccinate people who were due to receive their second dose on Friday.

Tarrant County: Tarrant County Public Health said in a tweet on Wednesday night that its vaccine clinics will be open on Friday for those with scheduled appointments. The COVID-19 test sites will be closed from Friday to Monday.

Collin County: Vaccine appointments originally scheduled for Friday at Plano’s John Clark Stadium are being rescheduled, the county said. Affected patients will be contacted by Curative Medical Associates. Collin County government offices will have a delayed 10 hours opening Friday.

Denton County: The county said in a tweet on Tuesday that the county vaccine clinic at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth would be open from 12 noon to 4:30 pm on Friday by appointment only. People initially scheduled for vaccination on Thursday had their appointments moved to Friday, the county said.

Parkland Health & Hospital System: Vaccination sites at Ellis Davis Field House and Eastfield Community College in Mesquite would be closed from Thursday to Monday, the hospital said. People with an appointment for these locations should go to Parkland Memorial Hospital at the scheduled time, and anyone who is unable to attend should be contacted by Parkland.

Test sites at Sam Tasby Middle School in Dallas, Irving Health Center and West Dallas Multipurpose Center remained closed Thursday through Monday, Parkland said.

Future forecast

Northern Texans are likely to take a break from dangerous weather conditions for a few days, but may soon be battling adverse conditions again. A round of snow could fall late Sunday to Monday, and the highs are unlikely to be past 20 on those days, according to the National Meteorological Service.

The Weather Service issued a winter storm warning Thursday afternoon for all of northern Texas, including Dallas, Denton, Collin and Tarrant counties. The clock will be in effect from late Saturday until Monday afternoon.

“Traveling will become almost impossible and can become life threatening,” the Meteorological Service warned in a winter storm alert, adding that “conditions close to blizzard” are possible with heavy, gusty snow.

The amount of snow the area may face is still unclear, although some forecast models point to accumulations of 7 to 18 centimeters, with higher totals further north, said meteorologist at the Meteorological Service Juan Hernandez.

“In addition to snow, winds above 25-30 mph can lead to borderline snow conditions during the early hours of Monday morning,” he said in a forecast update. “Travel during this time is highly discouraged, as any snow that falls will stick to any surface due to low temperatures.”