Hazleton, PA : A man from Butler County man died in a violent crash on April, Wednesday 26th 2017

A man from Butler County man died in a violent crash that closed Interstate 80 for over two hours Wednesday night.

The crash happened just west of the Conyngham/Nescopeck exit near a bridge that takes Interstate 80 over Route 93.

Krispen J. Kriner, 36, of Butler, was westbound in the area of mile marker 256, when he drove onto the shoulder and his vehicle hit a guard rail just before 7 p.m., state police at Hazleton said. His vehicle returned to the highway where a head-on impact occurred with a tractor-trailer driven by Marufjon Musurmonov, 24, Philadelphia.

One vehicle avoided hitting Kriner’s but the tractor-trailer couldn’t stop, Sugarloaf Twp. Fire Chief Duane Hildebrand said. The impact pushed Kriner’s vehicle a few hundred feet down the stretch of highway.

“This is one of the worst we’ve had in a long time,” Hildebrand said.

The tractor-trailer was found resting on top of the driver’s side of the vehicle, leaving Kriner and his female passenger, Hallah J. Sbita, 33, Montrose, heavily trapped. It took rescue crews around 19 minutes to free Sbita and about an hour to free Kriner, who passed away at the crash site.

He was pronounced dead by Luzerne County Deputy Coroner Gerald Jones.

Sbita, troopers said, was flown to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Twp. and her condition is unknown.

Two medical helicopters landed on the highway as rescuers worked to free the victims from the wreckage.

Hildebrand described the process. He said one tow truck was used to hoist the tractor-trailer off the vehicle while another wrecker was used to slide it out from under the rig.

The interstate was closed for about 2½ hours, Hildebrand said.

Musurmonov wasn’t injured, troopers said.

Also responding were Sugarloaf fire and ambulance, Valley Regional Fire and ambulance, American Patient Transport Systems Inc., West Hazleton ambulance, fire police and police from Sugarloaf Twp. and Conyngham.

Police from Sugarloaf and Conyngham and fire police helped navigate traffic from the closed stretch of I-80.

Contact the writer: achristman@standardspeaker.com; 570-501-3584


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Source :
Pennsylvania-Hazleton:Western Pa. man killed in violent I-80 crash