HARTFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Michigan State Police troopers from the Paw Paw post are investigating a fatal crash that shut down eastbound I-94 for about four hours early Thursday morning.
It happened around midnight near mile marker 43 in Hartford Township, according to a news release.
A preliminary MSP investigation showed the driver of a passenger vehicle was following the driver of a pickup truck heading east on I-94 when the driver of the pickup abruptly stopped.
Unable to stop within a clear distance, the driver of the passenger vehicle rear-ended the pickup truck.
The driver of the pickup – a 51-year-old Calumet City man – was transported to the hospital but later succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead.
Meanwhile, the driver of the passenger vehicle — a 31-year-old Kalamazoo woman — was taken to the hospital with injuries that weren’t considered life-threatening.
Troopers aren’t sure if either driver was wearing seat belts or if alcohol or drugs were factors in the crash.
Authorities are withholding the name of the driver who died pending notification of next of kin.
The crash remains under investigation.
Pokagon Tribal Police, the Coloma Police Department, PrideCare EMS and the Michigan Department of Transportation assisted at the scene.
While law enforcement was investigating the first crash, two semi-trucks were involved in a second crash near the scene.
Pokagon Tribal Police handled the second crash investigation.
