Wed | Dec 6, 2023

Truck crash in Illinois kills 5, seriously injures 5

Published:Saturday | September 30, 2023 | 6:51 PM
Emergency responders set up a staging area near Teutopolis High School on Saturday, September 30, 2023, in Teutopolis, Ill. Federal regulators confirmed Saturday that they are reviewing the crash of a semi-truck carrying a toxic substance in central Illinois, resulting in “multiple fatalities” and dangerous air conditions that prompted the evacuation of area residents. (Jeff Long/Effingham Daily News via AP)

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Five people were killed and five were seriously injured after a truck overturned in central Illinois, causing a toxic substance to leak from its cargo and forcing the evacuation of hundreds of area residents, authorities said Saturday.

A semi-truck carrying caustic anhydrous ammonia toppled about 9:25 p.m. Friday night in Teutopolis, spilling more than half its 7,500-gallon load, according to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

Effingham County Coroner Kim Rhodes said the five dead included three from the same family — one adult and two children under 12.

The other two were adult motorists from out of state, Rhodes said.

Additionally, five people were airlifted to hospitals, their conditions unknown.

Names of the victims were not released, nor would authorities discuss causes of death.

Emergency crews worked overnight Saturday trying to control the plume from the leak and struggled to get near the crash site.

“We have a lot of brave firemen, EMT, hazmat specialists, police officers that are working on this scene as we speak,” Effingham County Sheriff Paul Kuhns said at a Saturday morning news conference.

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