WeatherFanatics: Massive Vehicle Pileup on I-81 Shuts Down Both Lanes Amid Heavy New York Snow

By Michael Kuhne, AccuWeather.com Staff Writer

February 7,2015; 7:42PM,EST

A massive vehicle pileup occurred on I-81 north of Syracuse near Sandy Creek and Ellisburg, New York, Friday as bands of heavy lake-effect snow swept over the area.
An estimated 35 vehicles and five tractor trailers were involved in the incident, according to news source, WWNY-TV
There was no immediate report of injuries. At the time of the incident, heavy snow was sweeping across the region.

(Twitter Photo/@Brian_TWCNews)
"There have been bands of heavy snow moving in off of Lake Ontario since before dawn," AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. "One of these bands hit the area especially hard during the early afternoon hours with low visibility."
Temperatures at the time had bounced up into the middle 20s F, which might have contributed to slushy and especially slippery conditions, instead of just snow-covered roads.
"Icy surfaces are more slippery as temperatures approach the freezing mark; Temperatures started the day in the single digits and teens in the area of the accident," Sosnowski said.
New York State Police reported that both lanes of I-81 northbound between Exit 37 Sandy Creek and Exit 40 Ellisburg were closed because of the road conditions.
"In light of other chain-reaction crashes this winter, this is another example of how driving at highway speeds during rapidly changing weather conditions is dangerous," Sosnowski said.
As of Friday evening, all lanes have been reopened, state police reported.
The pattern is part of a very snowy period for upstate New York to New England through the weekend and into early next week.