Four people died in a head-on crash that closed U.S. Route 20 for about five hours in the Tapley Woods Conservation Area in Jo Daviess County, Illinois.
The wreck was reported on U.S. 20, between Elizabeth and Galena, just before 9:30 a.m. Thursday, May 21, 2015, according to a spokesperson for the Jo Daviess County Sheriff's Office, who initially said two vehicles collided and multiple fatalities were reported.
U.S. 20 was blocked and traffic was detoured.
Police later said a northbound Toyota minivan and a southbound Ford Ranger collided head-on when the Ranger veered into the northbound lane.
The minivan driver, 61-year-old Walter Mercer of Hanover, and the Ranger driver, 68-year-old Raymond Anger of Hanover, both died in the crash. Two passengers from the minivan, 85-year-old Patricia Fosdick and 83-year-old Robert Fosdick, were also killed. Another minivan passenger, 63-year-old Rhonda Mercer, was taken by ambulance to a hospital for treatment of her injuries.
Anger was the only occupant in his vehicle.
The temporary detour remained in place early Thursday afternoon, and U.S. 20 reopened by about 2:30 p.m., the spokesperson said.