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6-Vehicle Crash Friday on Interstate 57

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A tire blowout led to a six-vehicle crash on Interstate 57 in Franklin County.

Illinois State Police say one person was injured in Friday morning's accident that involved three tractor trailers and three other vehicles.
74-year-old Howard Griffith of Robinson is the injured person. His condition is unknown.

Troopers say all six vehicles were traveling south on I-57 near the West Frankfort exit when the vehicle driven by 18-year-old Mark Williams of South Bend, Indiana had a blowout. The vehicle came to a stop on the right shoulder of the road on a bridge. There were five passengers in his vehicle, including three children.

As Williams tried to pull back onto the interstate, a semi driven by 55-year-old Mark Lamothe of Ontario, swerved to miss Williams and collided with another semi driven by 45-year-old Edward Stafford of Mississippi. Stafford's semi then struck Williams' vehicle in the rear. The other three vehicles, a semi driven by 70-year-old Larry Sandvik of Chaffee, Missouri, a vehicle driven by Harol Whitlock of Benton and the vehicle driven by the injured Griffith, could not avoid the chain reaction crash.

The southbound lanes of I-57 were closed for about two hours to clean it up.

Williams was issued citations for Improper Lane Usage, Operation of Uninsured Motor Vehicle and No Valid Driver’s License.

 

As a news producer and news anchor on All Things Considered, Brad provides the listeners with a recap of the day's top local and state news as well as breaking news at any given time. Contact WSIU Radio at 618-453-6101 or email wsiunews@wsiu.org
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