A massive pileup involving more than 70 vehicles on Highway 416 stalled traffic for more than five hours Monday morning, blocking the capital's main artery to Highway 401.
Ontario Provincial Police say fog coupled with slush contributed to four separate pockets of collisions involving more than 70 vehicles during the morning commute. One crash involved about 40 vehicles; another affected 30 vehicles.
Southbound lanes at Fallowfield Road were also closed for a short time while tow trucks removed a tractor trailer stuck in the ditch.
Although so many vehicles were involved in the chain reaction of crashes, few vehicles were heavily damaged. Some cars flipped into the ditch, others were involved in minor fender benders.
"As we came upon it, people were flying into ditches all over the place," said Mark Watts, who was caught in the middle of the mess on Monday morning.
"The scary thing is people were getting out of cars, but cars kept coming -- one rear-end after another," added Anya Page.
Many motorists say they ended up sliding into the ditch to avoid being rear-ended by other vehicles.
Despite the destruction, only six people received minor injuries, including a pregnant woman who was taken to hospital as a precaution.
"The injuries are sore necks, back injuries - nothing life-threatening," said J.P. Trottier of the Ottawa paramedics.
"We're very lucky," added Const. Guy Prevost.
Police say the first crash happened at about 7:30 a.m. The northbound lanes were back-up and running just after midday.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Joanne Schnurr
