E PLURIBUS UNUM

NATIONAL TRA SPORTATION

B OARD

SAFE T Y

N 

 National Transportation Safety Board

 Washington, DC 20594

 Highway Accident Brief

Accident No.: HWY-01-F-H012 

Accident Type: 15-passenger van median crossover and impact with truck 

Location: Interstate 55 near milepost 250 in Will County, Illinois, 6.5 miles 

southwest of Joliet, Illinois 

Date and Time: January 26, 2001, about 9:35 a.m.

Vehicle One: 2000 Dodge, 15-passenger, Ram Maxiwagon 3500 

Operator: The Salvation Army, Chicago, Illinois 

Operation: Correctional facilities visitation trip 

Vehicle Two: 1985 Mack model RS688LST truck tractor, pulling 1990 Lufkin 

model TFV-IP-ST 48-foot loaded (42,480 pounds of telephone 

books) van semitrailer 

Operator: Double L Trucking, Kanakee, Illinois 

Vehicle One Damage: Destroyed 

Vehicle Two Damage: Destroyed 

People on Board Van: Eleven—driver and 10 passengers 

Injuries: Eleven fatal 

People on Board Truck: One—truckdriver 

Injuries: Minor 

Accident Description 

About 8:30 a.m. on January 26, 2001, a 2000 Dodge, 15-passenger, Ram Maxiwagon 

3500 van, owned and operated by the Salvation Army, departed a Salvation Army facility in 

Chicago, Illinois, with the driver and 10 passengers, en route to correctional institutions in 

Dwight and Pontiac, Illinois, approximately 83 miles southwest of Chicago. The trip was 

sponsored by the Salvation Army’s Correctional Services Program, and the service was provided 

to family members of offenders incarcerated in the correctional facilities. 

About 9:35 a.m., after having traveled some 32 miles, the van was involved in a fatal 

crash. Witnesses reported that the van was traveling in the southbound left lane of Interstate 55 

(I-55) near milepost (MP) 250 when it slid out of control on the icy road surface, crossed the 40-

foot-wide median, and was struck by a tractor trailer traveling in the northbound left lane of I-55. 

Witnesses reported the roadway appeared to have “black ice”1

 with blowing snow. Winds were 

13 mph, with gusts of 20 mph. The sky was overcast, and the temperature was about 20o 

Fahrenheit. One witness stated that he thought the maximum safe speed for the conditions near 

the accident site was 35 mph. The van was traveling at a witness-estimated speed of 60 to 65 

 

1

 Defined as dark-colored glacial ice formed by the freezing of silt-laden water. 

 NTSB/HAB-02/02 
mph near MP 252. The posted speed limit was 65 mph. 

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) had an established snow and ice 

control program and procedures. Plow operations on the I-55 route began about 7:00 a.m., and 

two passes at the accident site had been made before the accident occurred. According to the 

plow operators, because of the windy conditions, they had been spot spreading a chemical 

deicing material during those passes. The plows were in the process of performing a third pass, 

dispensing a continuous application of the deicing material, but had not yet reached the accident 

site when the accident occurred. 

Prior to the accident site, near MP 250, witnesses had observed other vehicles losing 

control on the highway. One witness said that he saw 5 to 10 accidents along the southbound 

lanes of I-55. Another witness stated that he had seen several vehicles that had lost control and 

run off the roadway in the southbound lanes of I-55 before he witnessed the accident van swerve 

hard to the left, go out of control, cross the median,2

 and roll on its right side into the northbound 

lanes. This witness had been traveling in the southbound left lane about 100 to 150 yards behind 

the accident van. 

Evidence at the scene indicated that the van yawed3

 counterclockwise about its vertical 

axis as it entered the center median at approximately an 18o angle. As the van traveled for 102 

feet through the median, the rotation continued, and the van began to roll about its longitudinal 

axis. When the van encroached into the northbound left lane of I-55, it was struck by a truck 

tractor pulling a loaded 48-foot van semitrailer. The truckdriver reported that he was traveling 

about 50 mph and that he braked his vehicle but was unable to avoid the van. 

At collision, the truck’s front grill impacted the roof of the van, crushing it down to the 

seat cushion level. Both vehicles departed the impact area to the right, traveled across the 

northbound lanes, struck a light pole, and came to rest in a gore4

 area, approximately 325 feet 

from the impact area. During the postimpact movement, four van occupants were ejected. (See 

figure 1.) The accident resulted in fatal injuries to all 11 van occupants; the truckdriver received 

minor injuries. Both vehicles were destroyed. 

Medical examinations of the victims and evidence from the vehicle’s interior indicated 

that a lap/shoulder belt had restrained the driver of the van and that he was the only occupant 

who used a restraint. All seating positions in the van were equipped with restraint mechanisms. 

Illinois statutes do not require adult bus5

 occupants to be belted other than in the front-seat 

positions. Section III of the Salvation Army’s Fleet Safety Program states: 

 

2

 According to the current American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ guidelines on 

median design warrants, a barrier at the center median, where the accident occurred, was optional. Since this 

accident, IDOT has evaluated the crossover problem and indicated that it plans to install a median barrier there. 3

 Turned by angular side-to-side motion. 4

 The term “gore” refers to the area between a through roadway and an exit ramp or the area between a through 

roadway and a converging entrance ramp. 5

 The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration certifies 12- and 15-passenger vans to be either buses–not

school buses or school buses. The Uniform Vehicle Code and all States define a bus as a vehicle with occupant

seating positions for more than 10 passengers. 

 NT 2 SB/HAB-02/02 
Marks from 

van crossing 

center median 

 Area of impact

 and

 scrape marks

 Ejected

 occupant

Vehicles at

0 10 20 40 60 80 100 final rest position

(FEET)

 Ejected

 occupant

Ejected 

occupant 

Gore area - base of slope Tire 

marks 

Gore area - base of slope

Southbound Interstate 55 Northbound Interstate 55

Deep

furrow

 Light pole

 and base

 occupant

 Ejected

Figure 1. Van median crossover, impact with truck, and final rest position of vehicles. 

[S]afety belts will be used by all occupants of every Salvation Army-owned 

 NT 3 SB/HAB-02/02 
vehicle or any vehicle used for the Salvation Army regardless of 

ownership. It will be the vehicle operator’s responsibility to ensure all vehicle 

occupants properly engage available safety belts prior to operating the vehicle. 

Van Driver Information 

According to Salvation Army officials, the van driver had worked his regular weekday 

schedule January 22 through 24, 2001. He was off duty on January 25, 2001, due to illness, 

suffering from an apparent cold. Coworkers reported that when he returned to work on the 

morning of the accident, he appeared to be in good spirits and normal in all respects. 

At the time of the accident, the van driver was experienced in the operation of 15-

passenger vans. He had regularly driven such vehicles, as well as the accident route, for 6 years 

in all types of weather and highway conditions. The Salvation Army reported that it has a policy 

on driving in inclement weather, which indicates that the driver determines whether conditions 

warrant canceling the trip. On previous occasions, the accident driver had reportedly departed on 

trips and then canceled them after he determined that it was unsafe to continue. 

The van driver was not, and was not required to be, a licensed commercial driver. He 

held a valid Illinois class 1 driver’s license issued on December 30, 1997, and due to expire on 

January 13, 2002. 

The analyses of postmortem blood and urine specimens obtained from the van driver 

were negative for alcohol and drugs of abuse. The toxicological examination revealed the 

presence of chlorpheniramine, a sedating over-the-counter antihistamine found in many cold and 

allergy preparations. In therapeutic doses, chlorpheniramine commonly results in drowsiness and 

can have measurable effects on performance of complex cognitive and motor tasks, such as 

driving a vehicle. Reduced performance has been demonstrated even in individuals who feel 

normal after ingesting the drug. The level detected in the driver was that expected from a normal 

single dose of the medication taken within 4 hours; however, the drug has a long half-life, and 

the level detected could represent an accumulation from doses taken in the days before the 

accident. 

In addition, acetaminophen was detected in the van driver’s postmortem specimens. This 

over-the-counter painkiller/fever reducer6

 is found in many multisymptom cold and allergy 

preparations, often in combination with an over-the-counter antihistamine, such as 

chlorpheniramine. Acetaminophen alone does not typically impair performance. The finding of 

acetaminophen in the urine is consistent with ingestion of a medication containing the substance 

within the previous 12 hours. 

In light of the toxicological findings for the van driver and the witness observation of the 

driver operating the van at a speed greater than prudent under the existing conditions on the 

highway, the van driver’s judgment may have been impaired by the effects of an over-thecounter antihistamine. 

 

6

 Often known by the trade name Tylenol. 

 NT 4 SB/HAB-02/02 
Probable Cause 

The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of the 

accident was the Salvation Army van’s loss of lateral stability when it encountered icy roadway 

conditions. Contributing to the loss of stability was the driver’s failure to reduce his speed after 

passing several other accidents and slower moving traffic on the icy roadway surface. The 

driver’s use of an over-the-counter antihistamine may have contributed to this operational error. 

Adopted: February 22, 2002

 NT 5 SB/HAB-02/02