Ten people were hospitalized and both directions closed for hours near Avenue 24; officials later set the total at 59 vehicles after early higher estimates.
EARLIMART, Calif. — A dense blanket of tule fog contributed to a 59-vehicle pileup on Highway 99 on Saturday morning, shutting both northbound and southbound lanes near Avenue 24 and sending 10 people to hospitals with minor to moderate injuries, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Authorities said the crash began shortly after 8:15 a.m. as visibility dropped to roughly 100 to 200 feet along a farm-fringed stretch of the Central Valley’s main corridor. The incident halted weekend traffic between Tulare and the Kern County line, snarling travel for hours while crews triaged the injured, cleared wreckage and towed dozens of disabled cars and trucks. Early reports from county officials suggested up to 150 vehicles, but CHP investigators later confirmed 59. By midafternoon, the roadway reopened after detours moved traffic onto rural routes, and officers began diagramming the sequence of collisions.
Drivers described a sudden wall of gray, brake lights and the sound of metal striking metal. “The carnage out there — vehicles turned over and up on each other, under each other,” Officer Adrian Gonzalez of the California Highway Patrol said at the scene. He said nine patients had minor injuries and one suffered a moderate forehead laceration. The longest delays unfolded where vehicles breached the center divider, scattering debris and fluids across both directions. Bus shuttles took uninjured motorists to the International Agri-Center in Tulare to warm up, contact family and arrange rides while tow trucks worked lane by lane.
Investigators said the initial impacts appear to have started in the northbound lanes, with chain-reaction collisions spreading in seconds as visibility closed in. Tractor-trailers, pickups and passenger cars were involved, and several vehicles climbed atop others when momentum carried them into the pile. Fire crews from Tulare County set up triage areas on the shoulders and along the median while CHP units closed on-ramps to stop additional vehicles from entering the fog bank. Officials marked unknowns, including the precise first point of impact and the speed of approaching drivers, as part of a routine post-crash analysis that will pull dashcam footage and witness statements.
The Central Valley’s winter tule fog, a low, thick radiation fog that forms when moist ground cools overnight, has long been linked to dangerous visibility drops along Highway 99 and Interstate 5. Similar mass-collision events have struck the corridor during past fog seasons, including multi-car crashes that forced extended closures in previous years. Saturday’s pileup occurred during a broader fog advisory that covered much of the valley floor, where orchards and open fields can trap cold air and keep fog in place into late morning. The geography funnels freight and commuter traffic through narrow windows of clearer air, setting up abrupt transitions like the one drivers reported.
CHP officials said their investigation will reconstruct the sequence of impacts and evaluate whether mechanical issues, disabled vehicles without lights or sudden speed changes played a role. The agency will review radio traffic, 911 calls and commercial truck logs, and coordinate with Caltrans on signage placement and the timing of lane closures. No criminal charges had been announced as of Saturday evening. Any citation decisions, including unsafe speed for conditions or following too closely, would follow evidence review. A formal summary is expected this week after officers finish mapping the scene and verify insurance and contact details for all involved motorists.
Drivers stuck for hours described a scene of quiet voices and flashing strobes in the fog. A mother and daughter traveling northbound from Oxnard said they were briefly trapped between crushed doors before firefighters pried them out. “It felt like we stopped and then everything hit from behind,” the daughter said. Tow operators methodically worked through the maze, pulling vehicles off the concrete barrier and loading crumpled sedans beside jackknifed trailers. Farmworkers on nearby roads watched from vineyard edges as helicopters circled and the countdown to reopening trickled through scanner apps and text threads.
By late afternoon, the CHP said both directions of Highway 99 had reopened near Avenue 24 after crews swept glass and cleared leaking fluids. Investigators planned daylight follow-ups on Sunday, Feb. 1, to collect additional photos and confirm damage totals. No fatalities had been reported, and the injury count remained at 10 as of Saturday night.
Author note: Last updated Sunday, February 1, 2026.