INDIANAPOLIS — In just 18 hours, Indiana State Police (USP) troopers responded to over 130 accidents and 27 motorist assist calls (stuck or disabled) in the Indianapolis area, most of those between 3 and 7 p.m. on Friday. The snow started falling in central Indiana around 3:00 and area interstates quickly became hazardous. Of 130 crashes, 13 injuries and one fatality were reported. Statewide, troopers responded to 363 collisions and 190 motorist assist calls.
ISP dispatchers received a call about a serious crash on northbound I-65 near the 106-mile marker at around 11 p.m. on Friday. The Indianapolis Fire Department was first on the scene and found a person unresponsive. Despite life-saving efforts, the victim was pronounced dead. Preliminary investigation revealed the deceased was a passenger in a vehicle that struck a guardrail and overturned, ejecting the passenger and causing the fatality. The driver was treated for minor injuries.
Per Indiana State Law, a blood draw was taken to test the driver for drugs or alcohol, and the results are pending. Investigators believe driving too fast for the road conditions contributed to the accident.
In another incident, two Indiana State Police cars were struck while troopers were investigating a crash on I-70 eastbound near the 84-mile marker. The troopers were not injured. Multiple vehicles were involved in the wreckage. One of the drivers suffered minor injuries. The ISP vehicles sustained substantial damage and were towed.
