63 year-old Theodore Van Wermeskerken of Mokena, IL was driving a 2011 Chevrolet pickup westbound on Interstate 24 near the Coffee/Rutherford County line on Tuesday morning around 11 a.m. when he was involved in a fatal crash.

According to Tennessee Highway Patrolman Harrison Fisher, the report stated that Van Wermeskerken side swiped an RV driven by James A. Klein of Millstadt, IL and then crossed into the median. Van Wermeskerken continued through the median into the eastbound lanes of the interstate and struck two commercial vehicles head-on and Van Wermeskerken was ejected. He was pronounced dead at the scene. No one in the RV was injured, and neither was the driver of one of the commercial trucks.

Both people inside the second commercial truck, which was carrying ice cream, were injured. They were identified as 35-year-old Joel Manresa and 6-year-old Dana Manresa, both from Florida.

The crash closed both eastbound and westbound lanes for several hours, causing traffic back-ups for several miles.

Source:

Partner Station WMSR
Partner Station News Channel 5