HAGAR TOWNSHIP, Mich. — A man has died after a three-vehicle crash involving a semitruck in Hagar Township early Friday morning.
The crash happened before 5:15 a.m. on northbound I-196 at Hagar Shore Road, according to the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO).
We’re told a 26-year-old North Carolina man in a pickup truck and camper traveled north when a passing car veered into the pickup. The pickup driver tried to avoid getting hit when he lost control and hit a guardrail, causing the vehicle to jack-knife before sliding to a stop, taking up both lanes of the highway.
Deputies say a 58-year-old Indiana man in a Chevrolet Equinox then swerved to avoid hitting the pickup but hit it anyway. The Equinox drove into the guardrail and stopped along the left shoulder.
Then a semi hauling a pair of dump trailers filled with gravel decelerated while driving along the shoulder to avoid hitting the pickup but crashed into the Equinox, BCSO explains. The resulting chain reaction made the semi slide into the median, and its rearmost trailer slid off to the side and flipped its load.
Authorities say the Equinox driver was pronounced dead at the crash scene. He has since been identified as Jimmy Cunningham Jr.
Drugs, alcohol and road conditions are not suspected contributors to the crash, which is still being investigated.
Witnesses to the crash are asked to connect with dispatchers at 269-983-3060 or investigators at 269-983-7141.
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