At least one person died as several vehicle accidents were reported near New Orleans after an extremely dense fog rolled into the area on Tuesday morning.
Officials closed a portion of Interstate 10 in both directions after a combination of wildfire smoke and fog produced what is known as a super fog in the area. Visibility for drivers on Tuesday was reduced to about a quarter of a mile, the National Weather Service said.
Here are some pictures Chase Ward shared with @WWLTV this morning. This was on I10 where that super fog, fog and smoke from a wild fire in the area, dropped visibility to zero. pic.twitter.com/mBkpjUmwvD
— Leigha McNeil WWL (@leigha_mcneil) November 7, 2023
Hwy 90 is not a good alternate for getting around I-10 as super fog is sitting on that stretch of highway too. 📸 Connie Fiorella #lawx @FOX8NOLA pic.twitter.com/d5ZzjnnNRQ
— Zack Fradella (@ZackFradellaWx) November 7, 2023
“All that smoke has got nowhere to go,” Christopher Bannan, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service near New Orleans, told the Associated Press.
There were at least four accidents in the area, including an overturned 18-wheeler, according to WWL, the local CBS affiliate.
At least one person died as the result of a crash on Tuesday, New Orleans police told according to Fox 8 New Orleans. The closure on Tuesday came more than two weeks after a super fog incident two weeks ago that resulted in seven deaths and a huge accident involving more than 150 vehicles.
New Orleans has seen significant smoke recently from a wetlands fire nearby that has produced a foul-smelling odor. A lack of rain and extreme heat throughout the year dried out the wetlands and lowered the water table where the fire is occurring, making it harder to extinguish, the city of New Orleans said in a statement on 23 October.
New Orleans typically sees super fog twice a year, but it has become more common with drier conditions, Tyler Stanfield, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in New Orleans, told the New York Times last month.
