More than 20 vehicles pile up on I-76 eastbound, closing the highway in that direction and backing up westbound traffic for several miles. Officials are blaming the poor weather conditions for the accidents and estimate clean up will take about three more

Credit: John Proppe

A multiple-vehicle pileup involving several semi-trucks brought traffic to a standstill and forced authorities to close off a section of I-76 East at 1:30 p.m. this afternoon.

At 3:30 p.m, Chief Tim Paulus of the Palmyra Township Fire Department estimated it would take three to four hours to clean up the half-mile stretch of the interstate affected by the accident.

Paulus said at least 20 vehicles were involved in the accident. He said five injuries were reported, none of which were described as serious.

Inclement weather conditions were likely to blame, Paulus said.

“The interstate was in terrible shape,” he said.

Earlier in the afternoon, the Ohio Department of Transportation posted a detour of Route 14 to US 224 to state Route 534 to I-76.

Contact public affairs reporter Ben Breier at [email protected].