HARMONY TWP. — Four people were killed and six others were injured when a tanker truck and a shuttle bus collided on Interstate 70 near U.S. Route 40 just before 1 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 7.
Killed in the crash were:
• Tracy Williams, 42, the bus driver.
• Lonnie E. Acton, 27.
• Alonzo Ruffin, 36.
• Kenny Fry, 61.
All four were from Springfield.
Rescue crews from at least three area divisions rushed to the scene after the westbound tanker lost control and careened into oncoming traffic in the eastbound lane, striking the van, said Lt. Craig Cvetan of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
See photos from the scene.
The bus driver was among those killed, and the driver of the tanker was taken to a local hospital with unknown injuries.
The condition of those hurt and the nature of their injuries is unknown.
The crash occurred when a westbound Mack truck driven by Zygmunt Wieckowski, 59, of Chicago, lost control and crossed the median into eastbound traffic. He was treated for minor injuries and released from a local hospital.
Traffic on I-70 was backed up more than a mile and curious motorists left their vehicles and stood on the side of the road to watch firefighters pull the injured passengers from the bus.
That task was a personal one for Nick Runyan, a Harmony Twp. Fire Department volunteer firefighter who recognized some of the victims.
The bus was coming from the Creative Learning Workshop, 205 E. Leffel Lane, a center that provides vocational and rehabilitation services for adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Read more about the center.
Center officials sent two bus loads of clients home early because of inclement weather, program coordinator Dawn Trask said. The bus involved in the crash was carrying eight clients and two staffers, she said.
It was going to Vienna Meadows, 125 E. National Road, where the passengers lived — and right next to Runyan father’s home.
“I see them all the time,” Runyan said. “Whenever you drive by, some of them will wave or talk to you a little bit here and there.”
The waves, the short chats, the familiarity of the faces all had to be put aside as Runyan did his job.
He helped his colleagues haul patients out of the ditch where the bus ended up and he saw a wheelchair broken into pieces.
“You have to push it to the back of your head,” Runyan said.
It does get pushed aside, for a while but, “it hasn’t really hit me yet,” he added. “You do what you’re supposed to do but it won’t hit me until after I’ve sat down.”
Authorities said the tanker was not hauling any fuel and several of the bus passengers were wearing some type of restraints and others were in wheelchairs.
Lt. Cvetan could not say what factors, including the weather, may have contributed to the crash.
Traffic was re-routed to state Route 41 for several hours after officials shut down eastbound 70 following the accident. The interstate reopened at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The incident was the area’s most deadly crash in more than four years. Four teenagers died Oct. 30, 2005 after their car struck a tree in the 700 block of Lake Road.
In 1993, five teens were killed on U.S. Route 68 after a collision with a pickup truck. That crash was the deadliest the area had seen in 30 years.
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I wouldn't want to be that driver....
Killed in the crash were:
• Tracy Williams, 42, the bus driver.
• Lonnie E. Acton, 27.
• Alonzo Ruffin, 36.
• Kenny Fry, 61.
All four were from Springfield.
Rescue crews from at least three area divisions rushed to the scene after the westbound tanker lost control and careened into oncoming traffic in the eastbound lane, striking the van, said Lt. Craig Cvetan of the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
See photos from the scene.
The bus driver was among those killed, and the driver of the tanker was taken to a local hospital with unknown injuries.
The condition of those hurt and the nature of their injuries is unknown.
The crash occurred when a westbound Mack truck driven by Zygmunt Wieckowski, 59, of Chicago, lost control and crossed the median into eastbound traffic. He was treated for minor injuries and released from a local hospital.
Traffic on I-70 was backed up more than a mile and curious motorists left their vehicles and stood on the side of the road to watch firefighters pull the injured passengers from the bus.
That task was a personal one for Nick Runyan, a Harmony Twp. Fire Department volunteer firefighter who recognized some of the victims.
The bus was coming from the Creative Learning Workshop, 205 E. Leffel Lane, a center that provides vocational and rehabilitation services for adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities. Read more about the center.
Center officials sent two bus loads of clients home early because of inclement weather, program coordinator Dawn Trask said. The bus involved in the crash was carrying eight clients and two staffers, she said.
It was going to Vienna Meadows, 125 E. National Road, where the passengers lived — and right next to Runyan father’s home.
“I see them all the time,” Runyan said. “Whenever you drive by, some of them will wave or talk to you a little bit here and there.”
The waves, the short chats, the familiarity of the faces all had to be put aside as Runyan did his job.
He helped his colleagues haul patients out of the ditch where the bus ended up and he saw a wheelchair broken into pieces.
“You have to push it to the back of your head,” Runyan said.
It does get pushed aside, for a while but, “it hasn’t really hit me yet,” he added. “You do what you’re supposed to do but it won’t hit me until after I’ve sat down.”
Authorities said the tanker was not hauling any fuel and several of the bus passengers were wearing some type of restraints and others were in wheelchairs.
Lt. Cvetan could not say what factors, including the weather, may have contributed to the crash.
Traffic was re-routed to state Route 41 for several hours after officials shut down eastbound 70 following the accident. The interstate reopened at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The incident was the area’s most deadly crash in more than four years. Four teenagers died Oct. 30, 2005 after their car struck a tree in the 700 block of Lake Road.
In 1993, five teens were killed on U.S. Route 68 after a collision with a pickup truck. That crash was the deadliest the area had seen in 30 years.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I wouldn't want to be that driver....
