Preventable Tragedies
Car Driving On Shoulder Slams Into ODOT Freeway Safety Patrol Truck On Ohio Highway
Video shows a motorist traveling along the highway shoulder before smashing directly into freeway safety patrol vehicle contracted by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT). The crash took place Tuesday morning, shortly after a contracted ODOT freeway safety patrol vehicle helped clear an unrelated crash scene on Interstate 270 at Sawmill Road in Columbus. Video shared by ODOT shows the patrol vehicle stopped just before an exit, straddling the line between the paved shoulder and the grass alongside the highway.
Read MoreGeorgetown Fire Police Officer Critically Injured after Being Struck by Car; DSP Investigating
GEORGETOWN, Del. – The Delaware State Police (DSP) are investigating a pedestrian crash that left a Georgetown Fire Company Police Officer with critical injuries on Monday night. At approximately 8:36 p.m. on Nov. 3, a 78-year-old fire police officer was providing traffic control at Lewes-Georgetown Highway and Shingle Point Road, while emergency crews were responding to a crash on the highway. At the same time, a Honda Accord was traveling eastbound, approaching Shingle Point Road.
Read MoreWoman dies in crash on southbound Interstate 15
SALT LAKE CITY — A woman is dead after crashing into a dump truck near Point of the Mountain on Interstate 15 Tuesday evening. According to Sgt. Mike Alexander with the Utah Highway Patrol, the crash occurred at 7:10 p.m. near mile marker 286. Alexander said the dump truck was stopped on the right shoulder of the road when it was struck by a car. The female driver of the car sustained fatal injuries in the crash.
Read MoreOhio man slowed or stopped on the interstate, causing crash, because of a deer
LAFAYETTE, IN — Mark Thompson of Ohio slowed or stopped his Audi on Interstate 65 about 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 30, because of a deer, Indiana State Police said Monday. They did not say whether Thompson struck the deer or slowed and avoided it. While slowed or stopped, a southbound semi slammed into the back of Thompson’s car, killing him and injuring his passenger, Samuel Casim from Toledo, Ohio, who was rushed to a Lafayette-area hospital.
Read MoreFatal Tractor-Trailer Crash in Polk County Emilie Anne Van Winkle dies in Polk County semi-truck crash, ISP says
POLK, IA, (October 28, 2025) - A 19-year-old Des Moines woman was tragically killed in an accident with a disabled tractor-trailer on Oct. 28 on Interstate 35 in Polk County. According to the Iowa State Patrol (ISP), Emilie Anne Van Winkle was driving a Mercury Sable that struck the rear of the semi-truck, which was on the outside shoulder due to mechanical issues, at about 3:37 p.m. near Elkhart. Sadly, Van Winkle was pronounced dead at the scene.
Read MoreBrookville Teen Seriously Injured After Hitting Disabled Car on I-80
WASHINGTON TWP., Pa. (EYT) — A Brookville teen suffered suspected serious injuries when she crashed her car into a disabled vehicle on Interstate 80 in Washington Township, according to Pennsylvania State Police. The crash occurred around 9:20 p.m. on October 18, according to a report from Pennsylvania State Police in DuBois. It happened on I-80 East at mile marker 91.4 in Washington Township, Jefferson County. According to police, a 2024 Audi A6 was disabled in the left lane of travel after it struck a deer at that location.
Read MoreMotorist Driving on Highway Shoulder Smashes Into Safety Patrol Vehicle
An Ohio motorist driving on a highway shoulder smashed into a stationary freeway safety patrol vehicle in Columbus on Tuesday, October 28, footage released by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) showed. The patrol vehicle was hit shortly after helping clear a crash scene on Interstate 270 at Sawmill Road in Columbus, the ODOT said. There were no life-threatening injuries, officials said. “This is yet another reminder to move over, slow down, and pay attention while on the road,” the department warned.
Read MoreState Police squad car struck in ‘Scott’s Law’ accident on I-57 in Arcola
ARCOLA, Ill. (WCIA) — An Illinois State Police squad car was struck on I-57 in Arcola as a trooper was directing traffic for another crash Thursday morning. At around 5:50 a.m., a State Police trooper was parked across the northbound lanes of I-57 conducting traffic control for a different crash that involved a commercial motor vehicle, according to a news release from ISP. The trooper had turned on the squad car’s emergency lights and was directing traffic to exit at milepost 203 onto IL 133.
Read MoreDes Moines, IA – 19-Year-Old Woman Killed in Crash with Disabled Semi on I-35
Des Moines, IA (October 29, 2025) – A tragic collision on Interstate 35 claimed the life of a young woman on Tuesday afternoon. The fatal crash occurred in the northbound lanes near mile marker 100.9, where a semi-truck was stopped on the shoulder due to mechanical issues. Shortly before 3:30 p.m., 19-year-old Emilie van Winkle of Des Moines was driving a 2002 Mercury Sable northbound when she lost control of her vehicle and struck the rear of the disabled semi.
Read MoreDriver flees crash after killing Ocala man working on truck
An Ocala man was killed after a driver veered off a local roadway and struck him while he was working on a truck, marking the third pedestrian fatality in Marion County in the past four days and the second in which the driver fled the scene. The fatal accident occurred on Tuesday, October 28, on SW 27th Circle, just north of SW 137th Loop in Marion Oaks. According to a report from the Florida Highway Patrol, a gray or silver Jeep Cherokee was seen traveling southbound on SW 27th Circle at around 7:30 p.
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