Probe of fatal I-80 crash focuses on third vehicle’s involvement
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State police conducted Wednesday's reconstruction into a Nov. 18 fatal crash, temporarily closing part of Interstate 80 in Pocono Township, after learning a third vehicle was involved in that crash, said State Police Troop N spokesman David Peters.
Crash investigators at this time aren't releasing any details on this third vehicle's make and model or its driver, but are trying to determine whether or not this vehicle actually caused the crash that claimed four lives, said Peters. Police normally do reconstructions immediately after crashes, but this reconstruction is taking place almost a month later because of police becoming aware of the third vehicle's involvement, Peters indicated.
Luigi Depari, 61, of Allentown, was driving a box truck on I-80 East. A bystander reported hearing that the box truck's tire blew out, though the Pocono Record was unable to confirm this with police.
Whatever the reason, Depari lost control of the box truck, which went across the grass median, through a guard rail and into the westbound lanes. There, the box truck hit a westbound car driven by Thomas Rutkowski, 53, of Tobyhanna.
The impact killed Depari and Rutkowski's son, Sammy, 12, both of whom the Coroner's Office pronounced dead on scene afterward. Thomas Rutkowski and other family members, including wife Galina, 45, and daughters Andrea and Michelle, were taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital Cedar Crest.
Andrea Rutkowski died in the hospital the next day, Nov. 19, and Thomas Rutkowski died there Dec. 3. Michelle Rutkowski was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and released while Galina Rutkowski was discharged Nov. 30.
Pennsylvania's 67 counties are covered by 17 state police troops, each with a crash reconstruction team. The Troop N team does reconstructions in Monroe, Carbon, Luzerne and Columbia counties.
A reconstruction involves taking pictures of a crash scene to document evidence before that evidence becomes contaminated or erased by environmental and/or human factors.
In this particular case, pictures were taken of the vehicles and debris involved on the date of the crash. Since the reconstruction is taking place almost a month after the crash, any evidence still remaining might include tire skid marks or dents on the roadway, though police haven't released any details.
In more common types of cases, police use equipment to accurately map distances, positions and angles of vehicles, debris and any other affected objects. This helps determine each vehicle's path and speed of travel before, during and after impact.
Tire skid marks help determine if any of the drivers involved slammed on their brakes prior to impact. The vehicles themselves are checked for any mechanical defects that may have contributed to the crash, as well as for installed devices recording the speed at which each vehicle was traveling up to the point of impact.
If police in this case determine the third vehicle's driver is criminally responsible for the crash, charges will be filed, said Peters.
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