At least 75 vehicles were ensnared in a massive, chain-reaction pileup on a Colorado highway Tuesday, authorities said.

The crashes unfolded in the Rocky Mountains west of Denver, specifically near Loveland Ski Area, and followed a chaotic morning that saw six separate wrecks, mostly along the same highway, according to the Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office. 

Officials said the latest crash forced a two-way lane shutdown on Interstate 70, as photos released by the authorities showed emergency crews assisting drivers at the scene.  

“The closure is due to a severe multi-vehicle crash on the east side of Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel that took place this afternoon,” the Colorado Department of Transportation (CODOT) said. “There is currently no estimated time for reopening.” 

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According to the photos, the crashes appeared to have occurred on a snow-blanketed roadway, as winter weather may have created hazardous driving conditions in the mountain corridor.

The area near Loveland Ski Area has also long been known as a major bottleneck on I-70, particularly as ski traffic converges with Denver-area commuters during the spring season.

Officials have not yet reported any injuries.

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Earlier in the day, officials reported six crashes during the morning hours, with some involving single vehicles and others multi-vehicle collisions. Five of the crashes occurred on I-70 westbound near mile marker 221, with another reported on U.S. Highway 40. 

The sheriff’s office indicated that all of those earlier incidents had been cleared before the major 75-vehicle pileup unfolded nearby on I-70 eastbound near mile marker 216.

An hour later, the authorities shut down both lanes of the highway. 

“Due to the severity of the crash, drivers approaching the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel should expect to be turned around for the next several hours,” CODOT said. 

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“Bottom line, we need folks to slow down, increase following distance, and make it to their destination safely,” the sheriff’s office said. 

Colorado State Patrol is leading the crash investigation. 

South Broadway’s newest bar in Denver is a “nostalgic-forward neighborhood cocktail bar” called the Good Luck Club. However, it’s been anything but lucky.

“It would have been really helpful to have a road map of here’s how you open up a bar,” said Ben Hamilton, Good Luck Club’s general manager. “Here are the steps you need to take.”

It’s finally open, six months behind target, thanks to a guessing game they didn’t know they were playing.

“I was like jumping over hurdles and navigating a maze to try to figure out and put all the pieces of the puzzle together,” Hamilton added. “There was a good list of complications that we ran into when we were filing for our liquor licenses, our zoning permits, our assembly permits.”

However, the city knows about the problems behind the permit process.

Tuesday marks exactly one year since Denver Mayor Mike Johnston signed his first executive order overhauling the city’s permit process with a new office.

“It’s really hard for our customers to understand what is needed for every type of construction project that could be out there,” said Robert Peek, the director of development systems performance with the Denver Permitting Office.

Hamilton says that was exactly what he and his team faced:  “It seemed like it was never the full answer.”

That’s why the Denver City Council approved a $4.6 million contract with ComplyAI for a tool that will help streamline and speed up the process.

“It’ll do an initial review of their applications and their plans and identify anything that I’m missing or anything that is approvable for the city,” Peek said.

The software could shave weeks off the process, and hopefully, in the future, businesses like the Good Luck Club can serve the community more quickly.

“We see this as part of our larger effort to really revitalize our local economy by getting these businesses and homeowners to move into their homes,” Peek said.

The permitting office is just beginning the implementation process to integrate the artificial intelligence tool into the system. They hope to launch it to the public by the end of the year. 

Meanwhile, the Good Luck Club is having its grand opening on April 30.