4 dead, 17 injured after truck crashes into vehicles in Michigan

Four people were killed and several others were injured after a semi-truck crashed into numerous vehicles stuck in Michigan traffic over the weekend.

On Saturday, November 2 at approximately 11:42 PM local time on Interstate 96 near Michigan 52, “numerous vehicles were stopped on the highway” due to power line work being conducted, Michigan State Police (MSP) says. according to the first district on X (formerly known as Twitter).

“The troopers (from the Lansing and Brighton Post) had just completed the closure of westbound I-96 at the M-52 on the overpass and had just reopened the highway,” the MSP said in the post.

“A semi-truck with (a) trailer was traveling westbound on the highway and struck stopped traffic. It appears the driver of the semi-truck did not see the backup and was unable to stop his vehicle in time,” the statement added.

“The semi-truck was in the left lane and struck numerous vehicles. The impact of the crash caused the semi-truck and numerous vehicles to catch fire,” police confirmed.

In a further update shared on X on Sunday, Nov. 3, police said 17 “drivers and occupants of vehicles involved in the crash were taken to Sparrow and McLaren Hospital in Lansing.”

Police confirmed that a 29-year-old Carson City man driving a Ford F-150 pickup was killed in the crash. A 20-year-old woman, a 43-year-old woman and a 47-year-old man, all from Lansing, also died.

“The victims were in a Chevy Trax and were relatives,” police said.

The driver of the truck “was taken to the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor for treatment of his injuries,” according to the MSP update, which confirmed the driver’s age and hometown were “unknown at this time.”

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“I-96 westbound at M-52 will be closed indefinitely. In addition, M-52 northbound and southbound are closed at the I-96 overpass until the bridge is inspected,” the MSP said in the mail.

The MSP had no additional updates when contacted by PEOPLE, and the Michigan Department of Transportation — which inspects the bridge — did not immediately respond.