A semi crash on eastbound I-80/94 near Kennedy Avenue in Hammond shut down both directions of the highway Monday morning, and a medical helicopter had to land on the interstate to fly out a patient in critical condition. Indiana State Police troopers responded to the wreck, and by early afternoon westbound lanes had reopened while only one eastbound lane remained open.
Chopper Lands Amid Closed Lanes
According to the Indiana State Police Lowell post's Facebook page, as reported by WIMS Radio, both eastbound and westbound lanes of I-94 were closed for a period of time Monday following the crash near Kennedy Avenue. Troopers on scene coordinated the landing of a medical helicopter, which touched down to transport a patient described as being in critical condition. The crash and accompanying photo were shared directly from the state police post, the station noted.
As of the report, westbound lanes had reopened to traffic, easing part of the congestion. Eastbound, however, remained more restricted, with only one lane open near the crash site as crews worked the scene.
A Corridor Already Under Construction
The crash landed on a stretch of the Borman Expressway that has been under active construction since spring 2026, as INDOT works through its $215.5 million 80/94 FlexRoad project. The 14-mile initiative, which runs from I-65 in Gary to Illinois 394, is meant to add dynamic shoulder lanes and ramp metering along one of the state's most heavily traveled — and most collision-prone — interstate corridors, according to Gary 411 News. Earlier this year, INDOT had already implemented lane shifts and temporary shoulder closures between Calumet Avenue and Kennedy Avenue in Hammond as part of the project's early phase, per WIMS Radio's earlier reporting.
The Borman Expressway carries more than one million vehicles a day and sees some of the heaviest commercial semi-truck traffic in Indiana, a combination that makes it one of the state's most collision-prone interstate corridors, according to the Crossen Law Firm. That density of freight and commuter traffic is part of why full or partial shutdowns like Monday's can ripple for miles in both directions.
Why Scene Clearance Speed Matters
Rapid response on this stretch of highway isn't just about convenience. A Purdue University transportation safety study cited by SafeHighways.org found that roughly 37% of primary car-and-semi collisions on the Borman Expressway trigger a secondary crash within the resulting traffic backup, often within 36 minutes and 600 meters of the original wreck. INDOT also runs the GEICO-sponsored Hoosier Helper Safety Service Patrol along 34 miles of Northwest Indiana interstates, including I-80/94, where responders assist nearly 20,000 motorists a year managing crash scenes and clearing hazards, per INDOT.
Indiana State Police District 13, based out of the Lowell Post, holds primary state police jurisdiction and crash reconstruction authority across seven Northwest Indiana counties, including Lake County, where Monday's crash occurred. Under Indiana law, officers are required to conduct a formal investigation and file an electronic crash report for any collision involving injury, death, or at least $1,000 in property damage, a mandate enforced through the state's Automated Reporting Information Exchange System, according to the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute.
Statewide, commercial truck crashes remain a persistent problem. Preliminary 2025 data shows Indiana recorded more than 1,600 heavy truck crashes resulting in over 70 deaths and more than 2,100 injuries, with unsafe lane movements and failure to yield among the top listed factors. Federal data has also shown that roughly 11.8% of Indiana's fatal traffic crashes involve a large truck, compared with an 8.9% national average, placing the state among the nation's highest for heavy truck crash frequency.
The condition of the patient flown from the scene has not been updated beyond the critical status reported at the time of the crash, and no additional details on the cause of the collision or the vehicles involved beyond the semi have been released.
