Christopher Anthony Sosa was arrested and charged Friday morning, according to a police spokesperson. He was booked into the Dallas County Jail. It's not clear whether Sosa caused the accident –– heavy fog is also suspected to have played a role.
At about 7:50 p.m., more than 16 hours after the crash, all lanes at Dalrock Road were reopened.
While the accident spurred traffic woes for drivers, it also created a problem for some area businesses.
"Everybody nowadays is in a hurry to get somewhere," said Brian Vosburg, an employee at Parkway Car Care, which is located along Highway 66. "And when you get stuck in something like that there are no words to describe it."
Vosburg said on average he works on 12 to 18 vehicles a day. Friday, he worked on three.
The owner of the business said their supplier of vehicle parts was stuck in traffic, which put the business two days behind.
"If I'm not turning wrenches working on cars, I'm not making a whole lot of money," Vosburg said.
TxDOT sent crews to help control traffic on either side of Lake Ray Hubbard and repair the 500 feet of concrete median barrier that was damaged in the wreck, said Tony Hartzle, department spokesman.
“Both directions are going to be shut down for multiple hours; motorists need to find an alternate route around this area just to stay away,” Hartzle said in the midst of the cleanup. “The detours are going to be fairly substantial for the next couple of hours.”
As dawn broke over the lake, Dallas police Sgt. David Conley said the wreck involved six 18-wheelers and seven cars. A total of eight people were taken to Baylor Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries, said Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans.
One of the 18-wheelers visibly jack-knifed into the median before coming to a stop. A trail of debris was scattered about the four-lane highway behind it. Fog was a likely culprit in the collision, Hartzle said. Not long before the crash, The National Weather Service issued a Dense Fog Advisory that expired at 9 a.m. as visibility in some areas dipped to below a quarter of a mile. The NWS advises drivers to slow down and use their low-beam headlights when driving through fog.
Eastbound drivers were forced to take the Zion Road exit while those headed west took the Ridge Road exit. Both were significantly backed up at 6 a.m., as reported by News 8's Brian Glenn.
Evans said units were called at 3:30 a.m. to help. Hazardous materials crews were on-scene cleaning up vehicle fluids. No one had to be extricated from a vehicle by Dallas Fire-Rescue, Evans said.
A Rockwall Police Department dispatcher says a few units assisted with blocking off the Dalrock Road exit but had no additional information. The Texas Department of Public Safety and the Garland Police Department are also helping investigate.
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Source: WFAA (Goodman, 1/10)
