Pileup of about 70 vehicles on Interstate 70 in Colorado sends 8 to the hospital

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DENVER (AP) — Crashes involving about 70 vehicles snarled a section of a snowy Colorado highway and sent eight people to the hospital.

The pileup Tuesday prompted officials to close the eastbound side of Interstate 70 in Clear Creek County, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) west of Denver, the Colorado State Patrol said in a statement.

Officials evaluated 19 people for injuries and took eight of them to the hospital, including one person who had “sustained serious bodily injuries,” according to the state patrol.

Images online show multiple semitrucks involved in the pileup, with debris lining the roadway, fronts of vehicles smashed and at least one vehicle balanced partially off the ground.

It was not immediately clear what caused the pileup.