TROY — A St. Louis man died early Friday morning following a motor vehicle crash on Interstate 70, Madison County Coroner Stephen P. Nonn said Friday. The victim, identified as 43-year-old Douglas M. Lodge, 43, succumbed to injuries sustained in the incident at Anderson Hospital in Maryville.
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The crash occurred at approximately 3:20 a.m. on Friday, October 18, 2024, when Lodge's passenger car struck a guardrail and became disabled in the left-hand lane of the eastbound lanes at the 18.2-mile marker near Troy. Emergency services were notified shortly after the initial collision.
As Illinois State Police Troopers were responding to the scene, Lodge's vehicle was subsequently struck by a tractor-trailer at 3:32 a.m. He was transported to Anderson Hospital, where he was pronounced deceased by medical staff at 4:56 a.m.
The coroner's office said the preliminary cause of death has been ruled as blunt head trauma, with the final cause pending completion of all reports, including routine toxicological testing. The driver of the tractor-trailer involved in the second crash sustained non-life-threatening injuries and is cooperating with the ongoing investigation.
Authorities from the Illinois State Police, including the Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit, are conducting the investigation, alongside the Madison County Coroner's Office.
Funeral arrangements for Lodge are being managed by Kutis Funeral Home.
