Cigarette causes two semi-trucks to collide in Indiana
A 2006 Volvo strikes a 2017 Frieghtliner on the side of highway 1-80/94
HAMMOND, IN – Two lanes eastbound 1-80/94 in Lake County were blocked for several hours earlier this week due to a crash between two semi-trucks.
Around 11 a.m. Tuesday, Indiana State Police were notified of a crash between two semis near Mile Marker 5 in Hammond. A red 2006 Volvo owned by Allynevych Inc. of Bensonville, Illinois, was hauling a trailer filled with metal racks. The driver was headed east bound in the far right lane when accident occurred.
The driver of the truck, Raji Salem, 26, of Des Plaines, Illinois, told the Indiana State Troopers that he lost control after dropping his cigarette. Distracted, he swerved off the right side of the road onto the shoulder where another semi-trailer had broken down earlier that morning.
The broken down truck was a white 2017 Freightliner, owned by J.B. Hunt and was loaded with wine and was surprisingly undamaged. At the time of the accident the Freightliner was getting hooked up to a tow truck owned by WAFFCO Towing of Lake Station. According to The Michigan City News Dispatch, the employee of WAFFCO was underneath the semi when it was struck – but he was not injured.
According to ISP, the two right lanes of the eastbound Borman Expressway were closed for several hours due to the metal racks being hauled by the Volvo having gotten scattered across the highway.
Both drivers were cited after the crash. The driver who caused the accident was cited for unsafe lane movement. The man driving the Freightliner, Cad Weber, 44, of Allegan, Michigan was cited for failing to turn on his hazards and put out his warning triangles. Both trucks were towed from the scene. Neither driver was injured.
