Two I-55 Crashes Claim 5 Lives; Injure 5 Others Near Channahon

The death toll has climbed to five after two unrelated crashes occurred in different directions on I-55 near Arsenal Road in Channahon within minutes of each other Monday afternoon, police said.

At a press conference Monday night, Illinois State Police District Commander Randy Ness said a semi truck driving northbound was speeding "in excess of 55 mph" in a construction zone into stopped traffic.

Eye witnesses said the semi truck abruptly changed lanes, hitting a stopped car, which then collided with two other cars.

Four people were killed and four others were seriously injured, Ness said.

That was at 2:16 p.m. At 2:33 p.m., another two semi trucks were involved in a rear-end collision in the southbound lane, Ness said. Both of those drivers were transported to area hospitals, with what police believed to be minor injures. However, one driver later died.

"It is our belief that he had a medical condition," said Illinois State Police Master Sergeant Dustin Geier.

Geier said that driver had been "talking fine" after the accident, and did not give indication that he had serious injuries.

In the first crash, all of the people killed in the three cars struck by the semi truck were women, although police declined to release their names or ages.

Ness released the kinds of cars and the number of passengers. One of the cars was a green Kia, with three occupants, he said. The driver and one rear passenger were killed.

The second car was a Chevrolet van with four occupants, of which the front passenger was killed. The third vehicle was a red Dodge Challenger, with one person killed.

The driver of the semi in the first crash is underwent mandatory blood and alcohol tests Monday night, Ness said. He was not under arrest, and was expected to be interviewed after the testing was completed.