If you got caught up in delays on the eastbound interstate this morning it may have been a wreck that was caused by an Ohio truck driver who slammed into the rear end of a State Police Squad car, and ended up hitting the Trooper’s car a second time when his careening semi jackknifed near Mile Marker 31 in Benton Township.
At approximately 7:05am this morning, a Trooper from the 5th District Hometown Security Team was on patrol along EB I94 driving behind two MDOT plow trucks which were treating the ice covered highway when his patrol car was struck by a semi-tractor trailer.
The unidentified Trooper says that after striking his patrol car the tractor trailer jackknifed and struck the patrol car a second time. The Trooper suffered minor injuries and was transported to Lakeland Hospital St. Joseph for evaluation. The truck driver from Ohio was not injured.
As you can see from the photos accompanying this story on Moody on the Market.com, the patrol car was one of the special 100th Anniversary commemorative vehicles with throwback markings from an earlier time and day.
The incident was one of several on the highway this morning, including an incident near the Stevensville exit, also on the Eastbound side, and one that closed down the Napier Avenue exit from the St. Joseph Valley Parkway when a crash occurred there.
A slick layer of ice was getting laid down just about the time morning commutes were getting underway, causing drivers to face conditions that played havoc with the ride to work. The incidents all remain under investigation.
*****UPDATE AT 2:20pm*****UPDATE AT 2:20PM*****UPDATE
Niles State Police have identified the driver of the semi and the Trooper involved. Charged with reckless driving was 23 year old Jordan Howell of Canton, Ohio. Meanwhile, Trooper Russell Bawks, a 20-year veteran of the State Police assigned to the Niles Post and a member of the 5th District Hometown Security Team, suffered minor injuries and was treated and released from Lakeland Hospital in St. Joseph and has returned to work this afternoon.
