Narcotics may have played a part in Tuesday’s I69 accidents

A motorist who hit a survey worker on I69 Tuesday afternoon may have been under the influence of narcotics at the time of the accident.

The Daviess County Sheriff’s Office says that 22-year-old Christopher Jacob Miller of Richland, Indiana was driving north on the interstate when hit his 42-year-old Christopher Ray Mains of Milan Indiana.  Mains works for ATC Group Services out of St. Louis.  They were contracted by INDOT to do survey work on I69.

Mains was taken to Daviess Community Hospital, hot loaded an Air-Evac helicopter and flown to Deaconess in Evansville with a life threatening head injury.

After impact, Miller’s car, a 2003 Buick Rendezvous, lost control, spun across the median and hit a guardrail going airborne.  It landed in the southbound lane of I69 and rolled over coming to rest on the west side shoulder.  Miller suffered a shoulder injury and was taken to DCH. Again authorities say he may have been under the influence of drugs.

As reported yesterday, while all lanes were closed as authorities worked the accident, another 8 car crash occurred when a motorist didn’t see the stopped traffic and a chain reaction collision occurred.  Five people from that crash were taken to the hospital in Washington and four were treated and released.  71-year-old Randell Sparks of Odon was later flown to Deaconess in Evansville.

Both accidents remain under investigation and information has been forwarded to the Daviess County Prosecutor’s office.