Slushy Mess Makes Treacherous Commute

Feb. 13, 2008 — -- With ice and freezing rain in the Midwest and Northeast, tens of millions are waking up to treacherous weather and a dangerous morning commute.

First there was the snow, then the freezing rain. Together they formed a toxic combination, creating a nightmare rush hour Tuesday that caused chaos on roads up and down the East Coast.

"It was just a glare of ice and I hit a little red truck and so it threw me off the road," said one man who veered off a road.

Four big rigs crashed in a sudden chain reaction on Interstate 70 near Pittsburgh, closing the highway for four hours.

"I'm stuck. I don't know where to go. I am low on gas. … I'm trapped between these cars so I can't even go around," said a woman stuck in the tie-up.

Chaotic Commute

Five hours away in Philadelphia, drivers were stuck for hours, after police blocked the ramps onto Interstate 95 South, after a tractor-trailer accident. In the height of the afternoon commute, police also closed the bridge over the Delaware River so that crews could spread salt.

At least 15 accidents were reported on Interstate 395 in Virginia, including an eight-car pileup.

In New York City two people were killed when a garbage truck slid off the road.

In New England, where they are expecting up to a foot of snow, some towns, like Hanover, N.H., have almost run out of salt.

As the snow becomes sleet, officials urge a slow and steady approach for the morning ride to work.

"Speed is everything. If you keep the speed down things are going to happen a lot slower, you'll have time to react," said Joe Orlando from the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

Fort Wayne Frozen

ABC News correspondent Eric Horng found ice on the roads in Fort Wayne, Ind., that's thick enough to skate on.

City crews have been struggling to clear the ice that has blanketed the area after floodwaters froze most of the area.

Construction equipment is being used to try and break it up, but drivers are also being warned to stay off the roads.