HAMMOND | A semitrailer plowed through a sound barrier wall along the Borman Expressway during a three-vehicle crash that injured seven people Saturday morning, Indiana State Police said.
Police said the semi came upon slowed traffic at 9:52 a.m. Saturday on eastbound Interstate 80/94, at Calumet Avenue, struck the rear of a Dodge Durango sport utility vehicle and pushed it off to the right. The semi then lost control and jackknifed, rear-ending a Chevrolet Tahoe sport utility vehicle before the front of the semi crashed through the sound barrier on the south side of the interstate.
The crash injured the truck driver, the five people in the Dodge and the driver of the Chevrolet.
The truck driver, Steven Burney, 51, of Hanceville, Ala., was the most seriously injured, suffering major facial injuries. He was taken to Saint Margaret Mercy Healthcare Centers in Hammond. Taken to the same hospital was the driver of the Chevrolet, Lori Carlson, 33, of Tinley Park, Ill. She suffered a facial injury. Her 14-month-old child was uninjured in the crash.
The occupants of the Dodge, driver Nancy Dotson, 48, of Chicago; and passengers Chanel Dotson, 42; Chanel Dotson Jr., 14; Jaynan Harper, 13; and Chyna Dotson, 6, were taken to The Community Hospital in Munster, complaining of pain. The Dodge ended up under the semi's trailer.
Police said all of the vehicles involved in the crash were in the right lane at the time of the crash. The accident led to traffic backups as far as the state line on the eastbound side. The semi remained partially through the wall several hours after the crash, and troopers were continuing their investigation to determine exactly what happened. Police said three of the four eastbound lanes reopened by noon Saturday.
The crash drew long looks from people passing by and residents. Tim Brauer, who lives in the neighborhood just south of the crash site, was outside his home and heard skidding, "And all the sudden you heard it (the truck) go through the wall."
Brauer said he ran to the scene and saw part of the semi's motor on fire.
"That's what I was worried about, but it went out really quickly. A guy came with a fire extinguisher, but we didn't need to use it," Brauer said.
The semi's door was wedged shut, but Hammond firefighters responded, broke the passenger's door window, got inside and kicked the door open so the trucker could be removed, Brauer said, adding the trucker was trapped inside for about 20 minutes. Oil from the semi and broken parts flew about 25 feet and were strewn about the scene.
Brauer and another neighborhood resident, Jose Lopez, pointed out that although the semi crashed through one set of sound barrier panels, the panels immediately to the west were damaged during a fatal crash about two years ago and never were repaired.
"This stuff happens all the time," Brauer said, recounting numerous instances of vehicles thumping the wall.
Brauer said the trucker stated he just dropped off a load in Chicago, but if his semi trailer was full, the crash could have been worse.
