The wreck occurred at 11:55 a.m. as freezing temperatures caught drivers off guard setting up a domino effect as cars slid out of control on an icy section of the highway, said drivers involved in the mishap. An onlooker described the scene as "intense." Edwin Sargent, 50, of Mill Spring, N.C., was pronounced dead at the scene by Warren County Coroner Roger Mauzy at 1 p.m. His fiance, a passenger in his 2007 Toyota Yaris, was unharmed. Three others were taken to the hospital, all with minor injuries. A Montgomery City woman was traveling home following a trip to Wal-Mart and watched the pileup unfold in front of her. "It was scary," she said. "Everyone was whizzing by." John Gray lives on the north service road near the scene. He said he could hear the noise of vehicles making contact with one another. By the time he looked outside, he saw cars sliding out of control. "What's bad about this spot, there is a blind spot and when something happens (downhill), it's too late," Gray said. "These trucks can't stop." The Missouri State Highway Patrol said Sargent was standing outside his 2007 Toyota Yaris exchanging insurance information with another driver in the center median when approaching vehicles could not stop due to the slick conditions and a tractor-trailer struck him. The semi, driven by Derell Boyd, 31, of Centralia, Ill., then landed on top of a 1998 Chevrolet Lumina driven by Adam Lininger. Emergency personnel spent a considerable amount of time freeing Lininger, 23, of St. Charles, from the wreckage. He was transported to St. Joseph Hospital West in Lake Saint Louis with minor injuries. Two others - Melissa Mattison, 47, and Jenna Willis, 2, both of New Florence - were transported by Warren County Ambulance to St. Joseph Hospital-Wentzville. Mattison was driving a 2006 Buick Skylark when it was struck by another vehicle. A male driver of one of the tractor-trailers, who declined to give his name, said he was driving 40 mph when the accident occurred and watched other vehicles slide into his rig. He noted he just picked up a 17-ton shipment of salt in Foristell and was headed to Hermann. He said others were driving too fast for the conditions. "That was part of it," he said. "I was slowing down. I knew that (crap) was going to happen at some point." The patrol also reported a two-car accident just minutes earlier at the same location which resulted in two more being taken to the hospital. Richard Meade, 60, was headed westbound in a 2001 Chevrolet Impala and lost control due to the ice and rotated clockwise. An oncoming 2002 Ford F-350, driven by Marion Madden, also lost control and struck the front of the Impala. Meade and his passenger, Elizabeth Meade, 20, both of Chillicothe, were transported to St. Joseph Hospital West. Traffic was backed up in both directions for several miles. The westbound lanes were shut down for about five hours as Warrenton police and Warren County sheriff's deputies helped divert traffic onto the service road at the Warrenton exit. The interstate reopened at approximately 5:10 p.m. "It was quite a mess out there," Highway Patrol Sgt. Al Nothum told The Associated Press. Numerous slide-offs were reported around the county throughout Tuesday afternoon. Highway 47 was closed for at least three hours after a propane truck slid off the road near Hopewell Hill, according to a Warren County Sheriff's Department spokesman. Other propane trucks arrived to unload the vehicle.

12-Car Pileup Claims One Life

12-Car Pileup Claims One Life