A 39-year-old man from Crane was killed earlier yesterday when his pickup left the southbound lanes of I-69 near Springville, went into the median and rolled. The truck struck a ditch, went airborne and rolled before coming to rest, and the driver was found ejected about 50 feet away. Greene County EMS, local fire crews and the county coroner responded to the scene.
What authorities reported
The Indiana State Police shut down lanes for a time while investigators worked the wreck near the 100-mile marker, then reopened the passing lanes once the scene was secured, according to The Bloomingtonian, which cited a post from the agency’s Bloomington District. Scanner traffic and dispatch records indicated officers had been searching for a red truck on I-69 shortly before it was discovered flipped on its side in the median. Multiple local agencies, including the Greene County Sheriff’s Department, joined state police at the scene.
Victim identified and crash details
Indiana State Police later identified the driver as 39-year-old Brandon M. Koontz of Crane. Troopers said the pickup exited the roadway, hit the ditch in the median, went airborne and rolled before stopping, according to WTHR. Koontz was found about 50 feet from where the truck came to rest, and the Greene County coroner assisted investigators at the scene.
I-69 safety context
This latest fatal crash adds to a troubling run of serious wrecks on I-69 this winter. Regional outlets reported a single-vehicle fatal crash in January south of the Goshen Road exit and another deadly collision on the interstate in early March, highlighting ongoing safety concerns on the busy corridor, according to coverage by 21Alive and 21Alive.
The crash remains under investigation, and toxicology results are pending, the Indiana State Police told WTHR. Investigators are still working to determine what exactly led up to the early-morning wreck.
