Austintown,OH : One person died and Eight people injured in six-vehicle crash on Turnpike,near the Interstate 76 in Friday afternoon,July 31st,2015

A fiery six-vehicle crash injured eight people and killed one person Friday afternoon.

It happened on the Ohio Turnpike, near the Interstate 76 interchange.

According to Highway Patrol, all the vehicles involved were headed westbound.

A 2008 Hyundai Santa Fe, 2013 Kia Forte, and a 2015 Dodge Charger were in the left lane, traveling slowly for traffic due to a lane closure ahead.

A 2009 Toyota Rav 4 and a 2007 Dodge Caravan were stopped in the right lane due to the lane closure.

A 2015 Volvo commercial vehicle failed to stop in time and struck the right mirror of the Santa Fe.

The commercial vehicle then proceeded down the middle of both lanes, veering to the right and hit the left rear of the Rav 4, then the right rear of the Forte.

The Forte was then pushed into the Charger.

Police say the Volvo commercial vehicle then struck the Caravan, pinning it against the right side of the bridge wall with the trailer.

The Volvo commercial vehicle came to rest against the right guardrail and partially in the right lane.

The Caravan caught fire and caught the trailer on fire as well.

The Volvo commercial vehicle was driven by 23-year-old Rahmatkarn Dhillon of British Columbia, Canada.

Dhillon was not injured, and officials are investigating his seatbelt usage.

The far rear seat passenger of the Caravan, 44-year-old Stacy Gardner of Massillon, Ohio, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Gardner was wearing her seat belt at the time of the crash.

Also in the Caravan were driver 45-year-old Michael Gardner of Massillon, Ohio, and two children.

Gardner was taken to MetroHealth Medical Center by Metro Life Flight and is listed in serious condition. The children were treated for minor injuries and released.

The Rav 4 was driven by 61-year-old Elizabeth Barber of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She had 3 people in the car with her, 2 of them minors.

They were all taken to Saint Elizabeth’s Hospital in Youngstown, Ohio with minor injuries.

The Forte was driven by 27-year-old Ruth Woods of Warren, Ohio. Woods was taken from the scene with possible serious injuries.

The drivers of the Santa Fe and Charger were not injured.

All westbound lanes were closed for more than eight hours and traffic was detoured.

Source :
8 injured, 1 dead in multi-vehicle Turnpike crash