The hundreds of accidents across the state started on Thursday and have continued throughout the icy weather, which doesn’t seem inclined to go away. Our Harris County personal injury lawyers caution drivers to take it slow. Be cautious, especially on bridges and overpasses. And when the weather gets slick and icy, avoid getting behind the wheel unless you absolutely must. The risk is just not worth it.

A 10-car pileup near Pecos on I-10 in Reeves County around 2:30 on Saturday morning claimed at least two lives and shut down westbound I-10 for over 24 hours. Several tractor-trailer trucks were involved in the fatal accident. DPS troopers were investigating the fatal crash, but icy weather was primarily blamed for the fatal crash and for the many other unrelated wrecks that clogged the highway. (DeAnn Lopez, cbs7kosa.com, 12/8/13)

Our Harris County personal injury lawyers note that in the Midland-Odessa area alone, the Texas DPS says there were about 130 wrecks between Thursday and Sunday. Around San Angelo, there were approximately 80 accidents in the same time period. And the Pecos area, site of the fatal I-10 crash, saw over 70 crashes.

But I-10 wasn’t the only major highway where movement ground completely to a halt for hours in the freezing conditions. For example, several tractor-trailers jackknifed on I-20, tying up traffic on that highway for more than 10 hours.

On Saturday in Parker County near Silverado Drive and Cutters Trail, a crash caused one death. And on Route 323 in Tyler on Monday, a 6-vehicle pileup sent several people to the hospital.

In Rhome in Wise County, Texas, two drivers were hospitalized with serious injuries after a head-on collision between a pick-up truck and a car on Tuesday afternoon. Our Harris County personal injury lawyers note that the car was westbound on Highway 114 when it veered across the center divider and smashed into the pickup truck.

Wise County roads, particularly Highway 287, have been treacherous in the ice. The sleet compacted into a thick, slippery layer of ice on every roadway in the county. On 287, traffic was brought to halt in the freezing temperatures overnight and into the following day. The stopped vehicles included two loaded Greyhound buses.

On Saturday, there was a multi-vehicle wreck at Highways 287 and 81 near the Montague County line that sent multiple victims to the hospital. The victims were seriously to critically injured in the crash. The injured included Lisa Marie Hall, Amanda Lee Garner, Kenneth Dewayne Fuller, Chong Kim, and Wui Kim. The Wise County Messenger reported that the crash started with two northbound passenger vehicles bumping into each other and then skidding across the median into southbound lanes, where more vehicles were drawn into the tangle. The crash shut down the road for hours.

Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the injured victims and with the grieving families and friends of those who died on treacherous, icy roads these past days. The Harris County personal injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC mention that some of the lengthy traffic tie-ups were because the enormous numbers of accidents since Thursday have tied up all the available tow trucks. The wait for an available wrecker truck after an accident could be hours. Continue to Part 2 to learn about the major risk you face of severe single-vehicle crashes on icy roads.

Read More About Icy Roads lead to Fatal Wrecks and Serious Injuries across Texas…