GOODLAND, Kan. (KSNW) — The Kansas Highway Patrol confirmed that at least eight people are dead after a pileup on Interstate 70 near Goodland on Friday. The crash involved more than 70 vehicles. After more than 24 hours, both west and eastbound lanes of I-70 between Colby and Goodland are now open.
After coordinated efforts from nearly every surrounding town and county, the area is largely recovered from what officials call an unprecedented scene. They say that the incident will stay with them for a long time to come.
“I’ve seen it before, but this is probably the worst I’ve ever seen,” Trooper Tod Hileman with Kansas Highway Patrol said.
Just behind the wall of dust from Friday’s storms is the wreckage of sedans, SUVs, and semi-trucks.
“It’s more or less like being on a boat,” truck driver Kevin McNamara said about driving in the storm. “If [the wind] is from the side, it’s like hitting a rogue wave. It just rocks the truck.”
With visibility near zero in the Goodland area Friday, some, like McNamara, just narrowly avoided the crash.
“I didn’t really get to drive through it. It was more or less I drove up on it,” he said. “After I was safely stopped, I grabbed my CB and started yelling, ‘Stop! Stop! Stop!'”
He compared the dust storm to driving in whiteout conditions. Those conditions affected nearly the entire state, stretching first responders’ resources thin and necessitating mutual aid.
“We certainly couldn’t handle it all by ourselves. Not one fire department can handle it, not just one EMS,” Trooper Tod Hileman said.
Getting a call with so many injuries, Hileman says, is the thing he dreads the most.
“These things stay with us for the rest of our lives, but it’s our job. We signed up for it. We try to do it with as much empathy and professionalism as we can. But I’m not going to lie and say it doesn’t affect us to see that kind of stuff,” Trooper Tod said.
A phone line dedicated to the family and loved ones of victims has been opened. It’s a priority number, meant to answer their questions as quickly as possible. If you are a family member or loved one and have questions, dial 785-827-4437.