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Posted on Wed, May 16, 2012 : 9:15 a.m.

17-year-old dies; 3 others injured in I-94 rollover crash near Chelsea

By Cindy Heflin

A 17-year-old passenger died following a rollover crash Tuesday night on Interstate 94 near Chelsea after the driver - who suffered critical injuries - steered the car onto the shoulder of the freeway while trying to pass other vehicles, police said.

The 17-year-old boy from Jackson and the driver, a 23-year-old woman from Ypsilanti, were thrown from the vehicle, Michigan State Police said in a press release.

A 28-year-old Ypsilanti man and an infant from Ypsilanti who were in the vehicle also were injured in the crash. Their conditions were not known this morning. The 17-year-old and the adults were not wearing seat belts. The baby was restrained in a car seat.

Witnesses told police the vehicle, a Saturn, was traveling east at a high rate of speed and went onto the left shoulder of the freeway near Dancer Road as the driver tried to pass other vehicles. The car went into the median, then rolled over several times before coming to rest on its roof in the eastbound lanes of the freeway, police said in the release.

A Survival Flight helicopter took the driver to the University of Michigan Hospital, where she was in critical condition Wednesday morning. Huron Valley Ambulance took the other passengers to U-M Hospital.

The crash, which occurred at about 8:50 p.m., and the investigation following it shut the freeway down for hours. It was finally reopened about 3 a.m., said Chelsea Fire Captain Augustine Syrovy.

Alcohol is not believed to have been a factor in the crash, police said. They are continuing to investigate.

Firefighters from Chelsea and Scio Township as well as Washtenaw County sheriff’s deputies assisted state police and Huron Valley Ambulance paramedics at the crash scene.


View I-94 and Dancer Road crash in a larger map

Comments

obviouscomment

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 7:47 p.m.

Very confused about why so many comments have been deleted, including mine. I know personally that mine was simply stating well wishes for the survivors and asking that people slow down and wear seat belts. Or is referring to facts from the article against guidelines?

grimmk

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 8:57 p.m.

I know mine might have been pushing the envelop on the culpability of the driver's recklessness. It still blows my mind that someone would think to pass on the shoulder at high speeds and not think anything of it.

Jordan

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 7:17 p.m.

The 17 year old that died was my best friend and a brother my prayers go out to ur mom and ur family R.I.P

Marty Beck

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 7:12 p.m.

What a shame . I prey for the parents of the 17yr old and if the driver survives I hope that they charge her . People are always driving recklessly on 94 between Jackson and Ann Arbor . I go 5 over and still have people riding my bumper cutting me off and flying past me. I do not see the State police on the freeway as much as I used to before all the construction .

ranger007

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 8:09 p.m.

That stretch of 94 makes me nervous when I have to travel..people tailgate when your doing 5 over..I witnessed a car pass me after I had to floor it to get out of the way go across 2 lanes to the right shoulder and pass a big rig I could not believe my eye..I fear someone like that will lose control and cross the median.

seldon

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 6:02 p.m.

Here we go again, ANOTHER anonymized annarbor.com accident report.

Cindy Heflin

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 8:06 p.m.

Seldon, the names had not been released this morning. We have an updated report with names linked to above. Police often do not release names immediately after a crash like this.

Dan

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 5:05 p.m.

Everyone..., Patience & Pay Attention, Please !! This is a real shame..., especially since, in less than a mile 94 goes from 2-3 lanes. Thoughts and prayers go out to all those involved.

justcurious

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 4:32 p.m.

All of these people's lives are changed forever. I will pray for the infant and the passenger who survived.

Johnson48racing

Fri, May 18, 2012 : 1:04 a.m.

Aww bless your heart.....

Dave

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 4:26 p.m.

Don't know what was happening to people's minds yesterday on eastbound I94 between A2 and Metro Airport yesterday. At several points on the route, I had to kick it up to 80mph to prevent being run over by traffic that was right on my keister. Even at 80, I was being passed, left and right, like I was standing still. Never experienced anything like this on I94 and I travel it a lot. It was downright scary. Very sad crash out by Chelsea. Never could understand why people absolutely refuse to wear belts. There is enough evidence out there to prove their value. Very glad these people had the presence of mind to properly protect the infant. Loss of life is tragic.

Cendra Lynn

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 9:16 p.m.

East of US-23 80 mph is the median speed for passenger cars. (Look up median if you don't know) I drive it many times per week. I have both side mirrors out to their full extent so I can see if someone is suddenly approaching in the next lane. If idiot drivers who notice they are going slower than everyone else would go to the right hand lane, the danger would decrease dramatically. This does not include trucks, who get in the center lane and stay put so they don't need to switch lanes when an entrance ramp has cars entering.

jcj

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 8:02 p.m.

I agree that there are too many careless drivers out there. But driving 80 to stay out of their way is not the answer. Whats next 85 then 90? Drive the speed limit and stay in the right lane.

ferdcom

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 6:32 p.m.

You were being passed on the right?

dfossil

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 4:02 p.m.

As tragic as this is, Why did it take the A2 News from 9:00 PM yesterday until 8:00 AM to post anything about this? This has been on the Detroit papers sites since yesterday!

kulse012

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 3:02 p.m.

Please wear your seatbelt and slow down. There are so many tragedies in life we can't avoid. Let's do all we can to prevent the ones we can.

WalkingJoe

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 2:25 p.m.

My wife and I were caught in the tie up coming home from Chelsea and we wondered what had happened. I agree with other posts about the fact that at least the infant was in a safety seat. I have seen too many children unrestrained in vehicles and always pray that nothing happens to them.

Sara 'Noel' Feldkamp

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 2:02 p.m.

I agree with you smokeblwr, thank god no one else was involved in this horrible accident. It could have been a lot worse. My husband witnessed the accident last night, he was 3 cars behind it when it rolled. From what he told me, the car just missed his front bumper. Thank god he was not involved and thankfully the baby was restrained properly. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those involved in the accident.

Craig Lounsbury

Wed, May 16, 2012 : 1:42 p.m.

"...ejected from the vehicle..." "The 17-year-old and the adults were not wearing seat belts. The baby was restrained in a car seat." I started wearing a seatbelt "religiously" in April of 1982. The incident that spurred it was the birth of my first child.