SHIPSHEWANA — A Michigan man was killed Wednesday afternoon when the truck he was riding in struck the trailer of a disabled semi parked along the side of the Indiana Toll Road.
The accident happed at about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at approximately the 115-mile marker on the Toll Road.
According to an accident report issued by an Indiana State Police trooper, 16-year-old Patrick Denison, of Gaylord, Michigan, was driving west on the Toll Road when for reasons unknown, his truck veered to the right onto the road’s shoulder, crashing into the rear of a disabled semi-trailer.
The force of the collision ejected Denison from the truck. He sustained critical injuries and was rushed to Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne by helicopter where he is listed in serious but stable condition.The LaGrange County Coroner pronounced a passenger in Denison’s truck, 58-year-old Brian Ziemba, of Troy, Michigan, dead at the scene. Due to the amount of damage sustained to Denison’s vehicle, police were unable to determine whether seatbelts were in use. However, they did discover the truck’s airbags did deployment.
The driver of the tractor-trailer, Michel Menard, 33, of Crete, Illinois, suffered a minor head injury. He was seated in the cab of his truck at the time of the accident. He was transported to Parkview LaGrange Hospital for evaluation.
Investigating officer Trooper Brandon Johnson was assisted at the scene by numerous ISP troopers from the Toll Road and Fort Wayne posts. He also was assisted by members of the Shipshewana Fire Department, Parkview LaGrange EMS, Parkview Samaritan flight crew, and Miller’s Wrecker Service.
The investigation into the crash remains open.