Quick Facts:
Where: The accident occurred in the lanes of Interstate 57 south of Paxton in Kankakee County, Illinois.
What Happened: A passenger vehicle struck a car after allegedly veering over the center line before a tractor-trailer crashed into the second car.
Participants:
- First car driver
- Second car driver
- Second car passenger
- Tractor-Trailer Driver
- Four others, vehicles unknown
Reported Injuries/Fatalities:
- First car driver, killed
- Second car passenger, killed
- Four other people, vehicles unknown, injured
Details:
On or about Tuesday, October 13th, 2020, around 12:50 in the morning, a three-vehicle accident with an 18-wheeler left two people dead and sent four others to the hospital. The accident happened across the north and southbound lanes of Interstate 57 near mile marker 266 in Kankakee County, Illinois.
Local law enforcement said that two as-of-yet unidentified people were killed and four were hurt when a car allegedly veered from the southbound lanes to the northbound lanes when it struck another vehicle. A northbound tractor-trailer subsequently hit the second car, throwing two occupants from the car.
The driver of the first car, as well as a passenger from the second were pronounced dead of their injuries a short time after the collision. Paramedics transported four individuals to area hospitals to be treated for various injuries.
An examination of Interstate 57 on Google Earth shows a four lane interstate with a wide, grassy median dividing the northbound and southbound lanes. Paxton is located 50 miles east of Bloomington, Illinois.
State Police are assisting local authorities with the accident investigation.