LAKE CO—Earlier this morning, troopers with the Indiana State Police Lowell Post responded to a vehicle crash on I-65, which resulted in multiple injuries and caused significant traffic delays.
On Tuesday, August 6, 2024, at approximately 4:16 a.m. CST, a crash occurred between three semis near the 238 marker in the northbound lanes of I-65. The 238-mile marker is two miles south of the Lowell exit. Preliminary investigation indicates that a blue 2022 Volvo tractor with a trailer was traveling north when the vehicle ran off the roadway. The vehicle then attempted to return to the roadway, which caused the truck and trailer to roll over onto the passenger side of the truck in the travel lane. A second semi, a white 2019 Volvo tractor with a trailer, struck the first semi, which pushed it out of the roadway. A third semi, a green 2023 Peterbilt tractor with a trailer, then struck the second semi in a rear-end crash. The chain of events left the first semi rolled on its side in the roadside ditch and the second and third semis disabled in the travel lane, causing heavy damage to all the vehicles involved.
The driver of the first semi, Ruslan Melnychuk, 47, of Wheeling, Illinois, had exited his vehicle before the second semi struck it. When the second semi struck his truck, he was then hit by his vehicle, which resulted in serious injuries. The driver of the second semi, Adamou Hamidou, 66, of Elwood, Indiana, also sustained injuries as a result of the crash. Both drivers were transported by ambulance from the scene to receive medical treatment. The third driver, Stacy White, 36, of Albany, Georgia, was not injured.
The right lane has remained closed since the crash for crash investigation and cleanup and is expected to remain closed for the next few hours until cleanup can be completed. Assisting troopers on the scene were the Indiana State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, the Lake County Sheriff’s Department, Lowell Fire Department, Tri-Creek EMS, the Indiana Department of Transportation, and Cheever’s Towing.
