Wrong-way crash following police chase kills 2 in Toledo

TOLEDO, Ohio — A car that was involved in a police chase early Thursday morning ended up going the wrong way on an interstate, with both people inside killed in a head-on crash with a tractor-trailer.

Jody Cicero, 50, of Monroe, Michigan, and Jason Butler, 24, of Bellville, Michigan, died in the fiery crash at about 12:45 a.m. on Interstate 75 near the Michigan border, WTVG Channel 13 reports. Two tractor-trailer drivers had minor injuries. The crash was recorded on an Ohio Department of Transportation traffic camera. (Warning, the video might be disturbing to some viewers.)

WTVG reports the chase started after the driver of the car refused to pull over for a traffic stop. The chase started on residential streets, then the vehicle turned onto I-75 north, initially traveling in the right direction.

The driver went into a grassy area and turned around, traveling south in the northbound lanes, WTOL Channel 11 reports. Police stopped pursuing the car, but a short time later it crashed head-on into one semi and also crashed into another, reports say.

The collision caused one of the tractor-trailers to burst into flames. WTVG reports the truck was carrying mail but the extent of the damage is unclear.

All lanes of I-75 did not reopen until about 1 p.m., reports say.