ERIE, Mich. — Traffic on I-75 in Monroe County was halted Sunday morning after a vehicle crashed in the southbound lanes.
According to the Ann Arbor post of the Michigan Department of Transportation, the crash happened at 12:21 a.m. on Sunday, July 28, causing the freeway to completely close near Exit 6 Luna Pier Road.
In a press statement, the Monroe County Sheriff said that an 18-year-old woman from Holland, Ohio was driving a green Nissan Altima south in the right lane on I-75 north of Erie Road through the Luna Pier construction zone when she struck an unoccupied black Ford Escape.
According to authorities, the Ford Escape was disabled and displaying hazard lights in the right travel lane when the 18-year-old struck it.
Following the initial crash, responders said a white international box truck also driving south in the right lane of the freeway when it hit both the Nissan and the Ford Escape. It is reported that truck overturned across both lanes of the expressway, pushing the Ford Escape into the left lane.
Monroe County Sheriff's Office said the driver, identified as Eddie Dillard, 59, of Detroit, was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators state the box truck was not equipped with an airbag system, but Dillard was wearing his seatbelt.
Investigators state that following both collisions, the female Nissan driver turned on her hazards before she and her passenger, an 18-year-old man from Holland, Ohio, exited the vehicle and climbed over the barrier wall.
Investigators also report that both of the 18-year-olds were wearing their seatbelts at the time of the crash and that airbags were deployed in the Nissan. The airbag system in the Ford Escape was not triggered, according to responders on scene.
Responders state that the occupants of the Nissan were transported to a local hospital by private vehicle and are both in stable condition.
Circumstances surrounding the driver of the Ford Escape and why it was stopped, unoccupied, along the freeway have yet to be released.
The crash remains under investigation by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, but driver inattention is considered a factor in the crash.
Anyone with information is asked to call 734-240-7548.
