1 killed, 8 injured in U.S. Louisiana super fog

HOUSTON, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Super fog caused by a combination of dense wildfire smoke and fog returned to the greater New Orleans area, U.S. state Louisiana, on Tuesday, leading to a series of crashes killing one man and injuring eight others, authorities said.

A total of 11 vehicles on both sides of interstate road I-10, including an 18-wheeler, were involved in the crashes.

New Orleans Police said at a press conference Tuesday that conditions changed quickly from patchy to dense fog, with zero visibility.

"It went from 'we can see' to 'we cannot see at all,'" Seventh District Capt. Wayne DeLarge told local media, "It was chaotic."

"The smoke is trapped near the surface and will severely reduce the visibility to near zero, making driving extremely hazardous if not impossible until it clears up," the U.S. National Weather Service said.

Last month as many as 168 vehicles were involved in a massive wreck due to a super fog of smoke from south Louisiana marsh fires and dense morning fog, claiming 8 lives with 63 others injured.

The National Weather Service said there were multiple wetland fires in the region Monday and smoke from the fires mixed with fog to create a "super fog," resulting in extremely poor visibility.

Dense fog is possible on morning commutes all week, but mainly through Thursday, according to local media reports.