Truck Driver Accused of Role in Deadly ‘Super Fog’ Pile-Up in Louisiana

A truck driver is facing charges including negligent homicide in connection with his role in a highway crash during a dense “super fog” in Louisiana in October that caused a massive traffic jam and killed seven people and injured dozens, authorities said this week .

The man, Ronald Britt of Lafayette, was driving a 70,000-pound vehicle at about 60 mph on Oct. 23 when he failed to slow down despite heavy weather and struck the car in front of him on Interstate 55 northwest of New Orleans. Louisiana State Police said Tuesday in a press release. The impact killed a 60-year-old man, James Fleming of Missouri, and seriously injured his wife, Barbara Fleming, 69, police said.

“It was determined that Britt was operating at a negligent speed based on the driving conditions at the time,” police said, leading to the man’s death and his wife’s injuries.

Poor weather conditions and limited visibility prevented vehicles from safely leaving the highway, police said, causing congestion and “several accidents.” Mr Fleming had managed to stop his vehicle safely, they said, but was “unable to move his vehicle to a safer location off the road.”

Louisiana state law requires drivers to maintain a safe speed appropriate for the prevailing driving conditions.

Mr. Britt, 61, surrendered to authorities Monday and was also charged with negligence, battery, reckless driving and other traffic violations, police said. It was not immediately clear whether he had legal representation.

In Louisiana, negligent homicide carries a maximum of five years in prison, a $5,000 fine, or both.

The crash was one of several that day, authorities said, as an impenetrable fog enveloped the area. Seven people were killed and 63 injured in the major traffic jam involving at least 168 vehicles, police said. They originally reported that eight people had been killed, but later revise that figureciting “intense fires” that “made the identification of the victims difficult.”