CHARLESTON, Mo. — A Pevely man was among the victims of a deadly pileup last week in southeast Missouri, according to new information released by the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
The collisions began about 8 a.m. Thursday on Interstate 57 as thick fog enveloped the Charleston area, about 150 miles south of St. Louis. The first pileup started in the southbound lanes, “then migrated to the northbound lanes,” said Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Jeff Kinder, snaring 47 vehicles — including several semitrailers — in the wreckage.
MSHP has released the names of the five people killed in the pileup:
- William Ryan, 75, of Pevely, Missouri
- Raina Jamerson, 22, of Kenosho, Wisconsin
- Joshua Wiggins, 30, of Candler, North Carolina
- Jesse Jimenez, 51, of Houston, Texas
- Jose Hernandez, 45, of Houston, Texas
Last week, the Mississippi County coroner said a total of six people had died. A final report from the highway patrol released March 23 listed five deaths. More than a dozen others suffered injuries from minor to severe.
According to his obituary, William "Bill" Ryan was a Vietnam veteran who was retired from the Missouri Department of Transportation after 37 years. He had worked for D&S Fence for six years before starting his business, A&E Transport, at the age of 71. He was a member of the Boy Scouts of America, a member and past Grand Exalted Ruler in Elks Lodge 1765, a Red Cross health trainer, a member of the Pevely Park Board and an alderman for Ward 3.
"He enjoyed traveling the US, solving puzzles, fixing things, working on projects and spending time with family, especially his grandchildren," the obituary said.
According to the crash report, the southbound pileup began when a Volvo rear-ended another Volvo, causing a chain reaction of crashes that killed Ryan, Jamerson, Wiggins and Jimenez and seriously injured several others, including four Illinois men from the same car. Also southbound, a semi rear-ended another, causing a separate chain reaction.
On the northbound side, Hernandez was killed when he struck a semi that had already crashed, and then his truck was struck by another semi.
“It was a horrific scene,” Kinder said. “The wreckage area itself was a half-a-mile long.”
The interstate was closed for about 25 miles (40 kilometers) in both directions in Mississippi County from the Missouri-Illinois border to Sikeston, Missouri. The interstate reopened about 4:30 a.m. the next day.
