NEW ORLEANS — Multiple individuals sustained injuries on Tuesday morning as thick fog led to a series of vehicular collisions, closing the lengthy 24-mile bridge that spans Lake Pontchartrain in southeast Louisiana. By the early evening, both sections of the bridge were reopened to traffic.
According to Carlton Dufrechou, who manages the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway, there were six distinct crashes: two on the southbound lane and four on the northbound lane. Fire officials from St. Tammany Parish reported that 33 individuals were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment of injuries, though there were no reported fatalities.
Dufrechou indicated that while he was unable to specify the total number of vehicles involved in the incidents or the precise count of injuries, he confirmed that a number of commuters were stuck on the bridge for several hours. Throughout the day, officials utilized vans to transport the 30 stranded individuals either to Metairie on the south side or Mandeville on the north side of the lake.
“Fog played a significant role, but it wasn’t the sole contributing factor,” Dufrechou noted. “The fog appeared suddenly, but there was also some haze present on the bridge. We frequently analyze accidents on this bridge, and a staggering 60% to 70% of them are attributed to distracted driving—such as texting, answering calls, or simply not paying attention to the road.”
The causeway, which links the New Orleans metropolitan area on the south side to suburban regions on the north side, was shut down at approximately 8:30 a.m. After the removal of damaged vehicles from both lanes, the bridge reopened around 5 p.m., utilizing rolling convoys to manage traffic.
The incidents on Tuesday echoed a tragic multi-car pileup on Interstate 55 that occurred on October 23, 2023, near New Orleans. That accident resulted in the deaths of seven drivers and left around two dozen more injured, involving approximately 160 vehicles caught in a “super fog” created by the combination of smoke from marsh fires and heavy fog.
Additionally, the Bonnet Carre Spillway Bridge experienced a brief closure due to the fog but was reopened later with no reported accidents occurring during the adverse conditions.