Fiery crash on I-94 leads to fatalities

A fiery crash on I-94, near Baker Road, caused the deaths of two drivers early on the morning of March 6.

The crash occurred in Scio Township in the eastbound lane of I-94. The Sun Times News reached out to Scio Township Fire Chief Andrew Houde about the crash.

“We responded to a report of a crash involving two commercial vehicles, one tractor trailer and one box truck, just before 4:30 this morning,” Houde said on March 6. “Our engine arrived on scene and found both vehicles well involved in fire. After extinguishing the fire, we found both drivers deceased on the scene, both were burned beyond recognition.”

The investigation is being conducted by Michigan State Police, so Houde said they can't speculate as to the events that led to the crash.

“My understanding is that the road will be closed for quite a while, while they complete the investigation,” Houde said on March 6.

He said Scio responded with their engine and tanker, and then requested a tanker from Dexter (which was assisting Chelsea on a building fire at the time), Ann Arbor City engines 3 and 6, and the Ann Arbor City BC-Battalion Chief-their officer in charge.

“It took a while to extinguish all the fire as there was a lot of spilled fuel on the roadway and in the median, which required foam to extinguish,” Houde said. “We were called back to the scene at 6:30 to extricate one of the victims from his vehicle and turn the body over to the medical examiner.”

In looking at the emergency response, Houde said Scio is fortunate to have great working relationships with their mutual aid partners.

He said, “This is an incident that quickly exceeded our capabilities, our mutual aid companies were there quickly and worked well together.”