MARION COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) - Illinois State Police say a portion of Interstate 57 was temporarily shut down after a two-vehicle crash resulted in a fire late Sunday night.
ISP officials say the crash happened just before midnight in the southbound lanes of Interstate 57 near mile post 114, about two miles south of Salem. According to the preliminary investigation, a 2011 truck-tractor semi-trailer was following a 1995 Freightliner two-axle box truck towing a two-axle boom truck with a flat tire in the right-hand lane.
Troopers say the driver of the truck-tractor appeared to notice the box truck was traveling slower, and attempted to move out of the way by braking and driving towards the right shoulder. As a result, troopers say the truck-tractor struck the rear of the boom truck, causing it to break free from the box truck. The boom truck and truck-tractor traveled into the right ditch, at which time both units caught on fire, resulting in the fire spreading to the wooded area between the interstate and nearby rest area.
ISP officials say the driver of the truck-tractor, identified as a 25-year-old man, was able to get out of the vehicle, but was airlifted to St. John's Mercy Hospital Burn Unit for treatment. This portion of I-57 was closed until about 7 a.m. on October 2.
The investigation into this crash is ongoing.
