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Fatal I-70 tanker-bus accident investigation continues

Bill Lackey/Members of the Springfield and Harmony Fire Departments rescue one of several victims trapped in a bus from the Creative Learning Workshop Thursday, Jan. 7 on Interstate 70. The bus collided head-on with a semi-truck carrying a tanker trailer. Four people were killed in the crash.

Bill Lackey Bill Lackey/Members of the Springfield and Harmony Fire Departments rescue one of several victims trapped in a bus from the Creative Learning Workshop Thursday, Jan. 7 on Interstate 70. The bus collided head-on with a semi-truck carrying a tanker trailer. Four people were killed in the crash.

Lonnie Acton

Alonzo Ruffin

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By Valerie Lough and Bridgette Outten, Staff Writers Updated 2:38 PM Saturday, January 30, 2010

SPRINGFIELD — The community continues to grieve as law enforcement officials attempt to piece together the cause of a crash that left four people dead and six others injured on Interstate 70 during a snowstorm Thursday, Jan. 7.

The investigation into what caused a westbound tractor-trailer to slam into an eastbound shuttle bus carrying adults with developmental disabilities could take several months, Lt. Craig Cvetan, commander of the Springfield Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol, said Friday. Investigators said the highway was slick, but they weren’t sure if speed could have been a factor.

The shuttle bus, which was traveling from the Creative Learning Workshop in Springfield, was transporting the passengers to their residence at Vienna Meadows, 125 E. National Road. CLW is a special needs center.

Some of those on the bus were in wheelchairs or restraints when the truck and empty tanker trailer slid across the snowy I-70 median and crashed with the small bus, which was carrying eight clients and two CLW staffers.

Among the dead are bus driver Traci Williams, 42; and clients Lonnie E. Acton, 27, Alonzo Ruffin, 36, and Kenny Fry, 61.

The six passengers injured in the crash included:

• Alec Courts, 26, taken to Springfield Regional Medical Center, High Street campus. He was treated and released.

• Wayne Barnes, 22, taken to Madison County Hospital and transferred to Grant Medical Center, condition unknown.

• Zachariah Puddock, 30, taken to Madison County Hospital and transferred to Grant Medical Center, condition unknown.

• Elizabeth Tharp, 31, taken to Miami Valley Hospital, serious condition.

• Jonelle Blume, 51, taken to Miami Valley Hospital, fair condition.

• Danielle Thomson, 23, taken to Miami Valley Hospital, serious condition.

All are from Springfield.

The truck driver, Zygmunt Wieckowski, 59, of Chicago, was treated and released from a local hospital. He had three speeding tickets and a couple of citations in the early 1990s but otherwise had a clean driving record. He also passed a background check allowing him to transport hazardous materials, said Illinois secretary of state spokesman Dave Druker.

Wieckowski has been driving for Highway Transport Chemical, of Knoxville, Tenn., for two years, according to a company newsletter.

Acton, Fry and Ruffin were jokesters and hard-workers who didn’t allow their mental and physical disabilities to define them, said a former CLW staffer.

“It’s going to be very, very hard because they all looked out for each other,” said Diana Chaney, who spent 12 years at the center before leaving just over a year ago. “If one would get sick, they’d all be worried. They’re not related, but they’re family.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Memorial Service

Remembering Friends and Loved Ones

When: 10 a.m. - noon, Saturday, Jan. 9

Where: Developmental Disabilities of Clark County, 2527 Kenton St., Buckeye Rooms, Activities Center

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