Quebec man charged in fatal 64-vehicle crash
LARAMIE, Wyo. — Authorities in Wyoming say a second woman has died in a massive chain-reaction crash that led to a criminal charge being laid against a Quebec man.
Alex Dragaytsev, of Longueuil, Que., was arrested on a charge of aggravated vehicular homicide after the 64-vehicle pileup in southeast Wyoming.
Trucks and cars crashed into one another Monday in dense fog on Interstate 80, resulting in a fiery pileup that killed a woman and sent up a column of thick black smoke.
A second woman was pronounced dead Tuesday. The victims were identified as Lynn Freeman, 58, of Williford, Ark., and Jenay L. Breden, 23, of Westminster, Colo.
Wyoming Highway Patrol Sgt. David Wagener said the 45-year-old Dragaytsev was being held at the Albany County jail in Laramie.
Wagener wasn’t able to confirm reports that Dragaytsev was driving a truck that was involved in the pileup when contacted by the Montreal Gazette.
“But I believe he was driving a commercial vehicle,” he said.
He said investigators at the scene consulted the Albany County Attorney’s office with the findings of their investigation and a decision was made to charge Dragaytsev.
Wagener said a digital message sign on the interstate, located 30 km before the area where the accident occurred, had cautioned drivers to reduce their speed because of reduced visibility and black ice. He said the message had been up for hours before the collision occurred. But he was unable to say whether investigators determined Dragaytsev had failed to reduce his speed under the dangerous driving conditions.
Wagener said that 20 to 25 people were taken to hospitals to be treated for injuries suffered in the pileup. Four of those people were listed as being in critical condition.
Dragaytsev does not have a criminal record in Quebec. In 2005, he was fined $300 for a Highway Code infraction in a town near Lachute, Ont.
The pileup occurred around 8 a.m. Monday, after two commercial trucks collided, causing one to jackknife in both westbound lanes, Wagener said.
Dozens of other vehicles piled into the crash. Among the 64 vehicles involved was a tanker containing a flammable liquid that caught fire and required foam to put it out.
The crash occurred four days after several pileups during a blinding snowstorm closed the busy interstate for two days.
The Foreign Affairs Department says Canadian officials are keeping a close watch on the situation and are ready to provide consular assistance as needed.