More information is coming out about a major crash in LaPorte County Tuesday that claimed the lives of three people, put two in the hospital with critical injuries, and claimed the life of a Rotweiler puppy.
The crash happened at around 1 p.m. on U.S. 20 near Fail Road. A car being driven by Jeffery Williams, 33, of Gary crossed into the oncoming lane of another car for unknown reasons, causing a chain reaction crash that involved a total of four vehicles, including a semi, according to the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office.
Williams and his passenger, 30-year-old Catrina Bontrager of Goshen, were pronounced dead at the scene. A passenger in the second vehicle, 23-year-old Michael Nahhas of Niles, Illinois, was also pronounced dead at the scene, along with a Rotweiler puppy. Two others in the vehicle are still in critical condition at South Bend Memorial Hospital.
The driver of the third car and the semi were not hurt. In fact, the driver the semi is being hailed for avoiding further injuries and fatalities.
“Following the initial crash, (the semi driver) was able to steer the tractor trailer, which suffered significant front end damage, away from other vehicles and opted to drive into the embankment on the south side of U.S. 20,” according to Deputy Robert Greer. “His efforts kept other vehicles from being struck.”
La Porte County Sheriff John Boyd offered praise for all of the emergency services that responded to the call. “As you would imagine, when a call comes in reporting a crash of this severity, the response by police, fire, coroners and the emergency medical service is large,” said LaPorte County Sheriff John Boyd. “Everyone worked well together to quickly render aid, reroute traffic and then begin the arduous task of reconstructing the crash scene. We would also like to commend the men and women of INDOT who responded with nearly a dozen vehicles and staff to help close a large section of US 20 and reroute traffic while the investigation occurred.”
The crash is still under investigation. Drugs and alcohol are not believed to be factors.
