A 17-year-old Choctaw girl has died nearly three months after a fiery crash on Interstate 40 in Oklahoma City left her with burns covering most of her body. Mileena Black was identified as the passenger who died on October 9, succumbing to injuries from a July 24 wreck that overturned the car she was riding in and set it ablaze near Sunnylane Avenue.
Black suffered burns over 80 percent of her body in the crash, according to KOCO 5 News. As reported by News 9, the crash happened on the afternoon of July 24 on westbound I-40 near Sunnylane Avenue, according to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
How the Crash Unfolded on I-40
Jeremiah Miles, an 18-year-old driver from Oklahoma City, was behind the wheel of a red Toyota with Black in the front passenger seat, per OHP. Troopers believe Miles was speeding when he lost control while attempting to pass a semi-truck in the inside lane, and the Toyota struck the driver's side of the semi before veering off the road and slamming into the center concrete barrier.
The impact pushed the barrier into the eastbound lane, investigators said, triggering additional collisions. The Toyota overturned and caught fire during the crash, and OHP said both occupants were severely burned. Miles and Black were both taken to a nearby Oklahoma City hospital with severe injuries, authorities said. The semi-truck driver, a 38-year-old man from Arizona, was not injured.
A Community Rallies Around Two Families
In the days after the crash, Choctaw Mayor Chad Allcox publicly called on the community to support and pray for Black, Miles, and their families, according to the same KOCO 5 report. Black's employer, Cafe Kacao, launched a local fundraiser to help with her medical care, and the mayor noted that the Choctaw community unites whenever a local family faces hardship.
Funeral services for Black were scheduled for October 20 at Choctaw Road Baptist Church, with committal to follow at Sunny Lane Cemetery in Del City, according to Dignity Memorial.
Part of a Wider Pattern on Oklahoma Highways
Black's death adds to a string of recent fatal wrecks along I-40 in the Oklahoma City area. Hoodline previously reported that Seminole teen Holly Roberts died in September after her car crossed the I-40 median and struck a barrier before being hit by another vehicle. In Black's crash, the impact pushed the barrier into the eastbound lane and triggered additional collisions.
A March 2026 report by the national transportation research group TRIP ranked Oklahoma 10th in the nation for traffic fatality rates.
Speed Remains a Leading Factor Statewide
Speed-related factors contributed to 32 percent of all traffic fatalities in Oklahoma in 2023, exceeding the national average of 29 percent, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data analyzed by TRIP in a report posted on tripnet.org. A different estimate put Oklahoma's crash costs at $26.4 billion last year.
Final federal traffic data recorded 645 traffic fatalities across Oklahoma in 2024, about a 10.2 percent drop from 718 deaths in 2023, according to a legal review of NHTSA statistics by the Addison Law Firm.
It remains unclear whether the Oklahoma Highway Patrol or prosecutors will pursue charges or citations against Miles now that Black's death has turned the case into a fatal crash investigation. Miles's current medical status and recovery have not been detailed publicly.
