A truck crash leaves 4 dead and 17 injured on a Michigan highway

A tractor-trailer crashed into traffic on a Michigan highway just before midnight Saturday, killing four people and injuring 17 others, police said.

Michigan State Police troopers were stationed on Interstate 96 controlling traffic as workers installed power lines across the road, the department said in a statement.

Before the crash, “numerous” cars were stopped in the westbound lane of the highway near the intersection with M-52, police said. The work, which was carried out by Consumers Energy, required the road to be completely closed for a short period, police said.

Police said the vehicles had just started moving again when the truck crashed into them.

“It appears that the driver of the truck did not see the reversing camera and was unable to stop his vehicle in time,” police said. “The truck was in the left lane and struck numerous vehicles.”

The truck and more than a dozen other vehicles caught fire after the accident, police said.

“Seventeen vehicle occupants were transported to UM Sparrow Hospital and McLaren Hospital in Lansing for serious injuries,” police said.