The crash happened just before 2 p.m. near the 48 mile-marker, which is just east of the Enon Road exit and shut down eastbound travel for several hours.
Coleman was driving a grey Mazda 3, traveling westbound in the eastbound lanes, when he crashed head-on into the truck. Both the car and semi erupted in flames.
One witness to the crash said Coleman appeared to intentionally drive at the truck.
“All of a sudden, they just drove right at that semi. It’s like they picked that semi and just drove right at it,” the witness, a Huber Heights man who only wanted to be identified as Jason, told reporters.
The crash remains under investigation and it is unknown if alcohol was a factor, according to Lt. Brian Aller with the Ohio State Highway Patrol Springfield post.
He couldn’t confirm that the crash was intentional, but he said after talking with witnesses, investigators are considering the possibility of a suicide.
Coleman was ejected from the car and pronounced dead at the scene.
The name of the semi driver wasn’t immediately available Tuesday evening. He escaped with just a few scratches, Aller said.
“You’ve got 80,000 pounds approximately in the truck, versus an approximate 3,000 pound vehicle,” he said.
Dispatchers received reports just before the crash about a driver headed in the wrong direction.
“It wasn’t even 30 seconds to a minute later is when the crash occurred,” Aller said. “We actually had troopers on 70 that were headed this way that were trying to intercept it, but we couldn’t get here in time — just too quick.”
Jason, who captured the crash on cell phone video, said he was his way home from work in Springfield. He said he was initially confused when he saw the Mazda several cars in front of him cross over to the oncoming lanes at an emergency U-turn location.
“I thought they were just going for the quick U-turn, but all in one motion … they just get right on the highway and they’re driving on the other side in the emergency lane,” he said.
The Mazda appeared to speed up before veering into the path of the tractor-trailer.
“It was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen,” Jason said. “It just demolished that car. I mean it was a big explosion … The whole thing was just in full blaze.”
The semi was hauling rolls of steel, and the steel was on the highway and on fire when emergency crews arrived.
Initial reports indicated up to 150 gallons of diesel fuel spilled onto the ground, and the EPA was called to the scene.
The pavement also caught fire and suffered extensive damage, Aller said. Multiple fire crews responded, including from Mad River Twp. and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
As of Tuesday evening, I-70 eastbound was still closed and westbound traffic was moving slowly.
About the Author