Two motorists were killed during the early morning of Thursday, July 27, after a 65-year-old trucker crashed into their vehicles in a tragic three-car accident. The truck driver was taken into custody soon thereafter by state police on suspicion of having been driving under the influence (DUI) of drugs at the time.

According to the witness statements, the trucker had been driving eastbound along U.S. 50 in Flora. He was approaching the roadway’s intersection with Stanford Street immediately before the crash occurred.

The driver of a minivan, a 29-year-old Noble man, was driving in the opposite direction away from that same intersection as he was about to pass the trucker. Before he could, though, the trucker swerved into oncoming traffic striking the minivan head-on. After striking the minivan, it’s then that the tractor-trailer’s driver swerved and struck yet another vehicle, this time a utility truck that had been riding immediately behind the minivan.

Ultimately, all three vehicles came to rest on the north portion of the roadway where both the utility truck and minivan caught on fire. By the time emergency crews arrived on the scene, both motorists had died.

As for the trucker, he was taken to be treated at Clay County Hospital for undisclosed injuries. After his release, the Sikeston, Missouri, man was booked into the jail where he was charged with DUI, improper lane usage and drug paraphernalia possession.

If you’ve lost a loved one in a fatal crash that you believe resulted from the driver being intoxicated, distracted or otherwise negligent, then a Kansas City, Missouri, truck accident attorney may be able to help you recover funeral expenses, future earnings and other losses.

Source: WJBD, “Two People Dead in a Wreck Where Semi Driver Is Arrested for Driving Under the Influence of Drugs,” July 27, 2017