Foggy crash a tragedy for Houston-area family
Nov 24, 2012, 3:44 AM
BEAUMONT, Texas (AP) – The children of a Houston-area couple killed during Thursday’s massive interstate wreck in Texas say this year was the family’s first Thanksgiving apart.
Authorities are investigating the chain-reaction wreck that involved more than 100 vehicles, many of which were left twisted on top of each other. The wreck killed the couple and injured at least 80 other people during heavy fog along Interstate 10 near Beaumont.
Twelve people remain hospitalized in serious condition, the Texas Department of Public Safety said in a statement Friday.
Vincent and Debbie Leggio were on their way to Louisiana for a gambling trip when their vehicle was caught in the wreck, sons V.J. and Richard Leggio told KHOU-TV.
“My parents are wonderful loving people _ all who knew them knew that,” V.J. Leggio told the station. “They will be sorely missed _ sorely missed.”
He said he worked with his father at the family business, Vinco Electric in Pearland, the Houston suburb where his parents lived.
“We had a good relationship,” he added. “We got to spend time together golfing and fishing, and I’m so thankful for that now.”
The wreck occurred southwest of Beaumont, on Texas’ Gulf Coast. The heavy fog made it hard for law enforcement to determine at first how many wrecks had occurred.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, a crash on the eastbound side of the highway led to other accidents in a dangerous chain reaction. There were multiple crashes on the other side of the highway as well.
Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Chuck Havard told KFDM-TV on Friday that investigators will work to determine whether any drivers will face charges.
Phone messages left Friday by The Associated Press for law enforcement officials weren’t returned.
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