Three Truck Tractor Semi Trailers, Two Straight Trucks, Three Passenger Vehicles

Enter Source, Mar 07, 2005

A multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 55 near the Chicago suburbs injured nine people Thursday and scattered debris across all the lanes, shutting down a five-mile stretch of interstate.

Three truck tractor semi trailers, two straight trucks, three passenger vehicles and a pickup crashed at 12:20 p.m. in Will County near Plainfield, about 30 miles southwest of Chicago, authorities said.

Debris from the accident reached as far a nearby frontage road, authorities said.

Illinois State Police Master Sgt. Jody Oseman said nine people were taken to area hospitals, some flown by helicopter.

According to an ISP press release, three injured persons were taken by ambulance to Provena Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet and three others by ambulance to Silver Cross Hospital in Joliet.

One person was transported by helicopter to St. James Hospital and Health Centers in Olympia Fields. That man was listed in critical condition Thursday night, a nursing supervisor said.

A man and woman were also flown from the scene to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, said Judy, a nursing supervisor. She would provide no other information.

The six other victims were listed as either in stable or in good condition at the other area hospitals Thursday.

A preliminary investigation shows that the accident began when a tractor-trailer struck a box truck in the southbound lane, Oseman said.

The truck then crossed the median and struck a semitrailer in the northbound lanes. The other vehicles collided in the southbound lanes.

One of the box trucks was transporting mattresses and the other was empty, Oseman said.

The accident remained under investigation. No citations had been issued as of Thursday evening.

Anyone with information or who may have witnessed the crash is urged to phone Illinois State Police at (815) 726-6377, ext. 265.

Traffic was closed on the interstate between the U.S. 30 and U.S. 52 exits for about four hours after the accident, state police said.