Devi Shastri and Sophie Carson

Appleton Post-Crescent

Note: Authorities have identified the man who died. Learn more here.

TOWN OF NEENAH - One person was killed and dozens of drivers were stranded following a pileup of more than 100 cars on Interstate 41 in the town of Neenah.

Whiteout conditions caused the "chain reaction crash" at 11:10 a.m., said Winnebago County Sheriff's Department Chief Deputy Todd Christopherson at a Sunday afternoon press conference. It will take weeks, he said, to trace a specific chain of events in the complex crash, which occurred in the southbound lanes of the interstate and closed the road for much of the day.

"I've been in the law enforcement business — this is my 27th year," Christopherson said. "On scene, that was the worst conditions I've ever seen."

In a second press conference Sunday evening, police gave final numbers on those affected:

131 vehicles involved in the crash

71 people treated at local hospitals, 66 of them released

5 people admitted to hospitals for injuries

1 dead

Christopherson said some people were taken to local hospitals as far north as Green Bay, something he called "unheard of, in my career."

A video shot by a driver on I-41 and shared Sunday with USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin showed cars and semi trucks sandwiched together at the scene.

The Sheriff's Office has a call center set up to help families locate their loved ones by calling 920-236-7459.

The department opened a reunification center at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 1140 Tullar Road in Neenah, which Winnebago County Sheriff John Matz said has since been closed.

As of 8:30 p.m. Sunday, crews removed nearly all cars from the highway, though the southbound lanes of the highway remained closed due to whiteout conditions.

Police called for extrication tools among their response requests. Multiple local dispatchers asked rescue crews to respond to the scene, in total 18 agencies. The American Red Cross and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources also responded.

"Today's weather taxed the capacity of EMS providers and first responders," Matz said. "Between 11:05 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., we received 772 911 calls, resulting in 108 calls for service."

Nearby businesses opened their doors to crash victims, including Stars Cabaret and Kwik Trip. Kobussen Bus and Keller Coach buses also arrived to take stranded drivers off the highway.

Police began busing people away from the scene of the crash and closed the highway from the U.S. 10 exit to the Breezewood Lane exit, so the backed-up traffic could drive north up the southbound lanes and exit the highway.

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation announced the northbound lanes of I-41 were opened as of 2 p.m., and the southbound lanes opened before 6.

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