MONMOUTH, Illinois -- Two separate traffic crashes snarled traffic on the already-busy Illinois Route 64 near Monmouth the morning of Thursday, May 3.
The first was a single-vehicle crash that happened around 5 a.m. when a semi-driver failed to negotiate the right turn from US 34 onto Route 164, resulting in the rig sliding off the road and getting stuck in mud. The driver of the truck, Jacqueline Horn of Muncie, Ind., was not injured.
The second crash occurred around 10 a.m. and involved a car and a second semi near the intersection of Route 164 and 110th Street. A car driven by Brian Deppe of Galesburg heading west crossed the center line and struck an east-bound semi driven by Henry Kowalczyk of Lockport, Ill.
Deppe was injured in the crash and transported to OSF St. Mary Hospital in Galesburg. Police did not release his condition. Kowalczyk was not injured. The crash forced the road to close for around an hour-and-a-half. It remains under investigation.
Route 164 has seen a large uptick in traffic - as well as accidents and speeding incidents - since the closure of US 34 between Galesburg and Monmouth. Crews shut down both directions of the highway Monday, April 16, for a construction project, with Route 164 serving as the main detour. US 34 is expected to reopen in five months.