First responders recall Fort Worth I-35 pileup a year later

Fort Worth firefighters recall deadly I-35 pileup

Fort Worth firefighters are making plans to honor the victims killed in a pileup on an icy highway nearly one year ago.

FORT WORTH, Texas - Friday will be one year to the day since the deadly pileup on an icy freeway in Fort Worth.

Six people were killed in the crash that involved more than 100 cars and trucks on Interstate 35 near Northside Drive.

The Fort Worth Fire Department released video of the first responders talking about the tragic day.

They were warned by one of the first people on the scene that it would be bad.

"You could tell by the sound of his voice that what we were doing to was pretty serious," said Matt Brown, an engineer and EMT for the Fort Worth FD.

"We started crawling over cars and started going from car and triaging the situation," added Craig Goudie, a firefighter and EMT.

"The vehicles were all compacted together. Their horns were honking, wheels turning. The smell of gasoline was everywhere. It was a surreal sight," said M.H. Brown, an EMT.

The National Transportation Safety Board found the roads had been pre-treated to prevent icing, but a round of freezing rain moved in only hours before the chain-reaction collision.