ST. LOUIS — A driver has died after a serious crash on Interstate 64 in south St. Louis early Sunday, which left two other drivers with injuries.
The call for the crash came in at about 3:17 a.m. in the westbound lanes near the McCausland Avenue exit. Three vehicles were involved.
Police released a preliminary report update Monday morning. The investigation so far has found that a 32-year-old man driving a Nissan Sentra lost control in the westbound lanes, hit the center median and came to a stop in one of the lanes. Then, 33-year-old Gregorio Ruiz hit the Sentra. Ruiz's vehicle caught on fire. A short time later another driver hit the first car that originally lost control.
5 On Your Side's video from the scene showed the three vehicles with extensive damage. The cars came to a stop stretched across the I-64 westbound lanes. Glass, pieces of the vehicles and debris were scattered across the highway.
All three drivers were rushed to a hospital.
Ruiz was last listed in critical condition, but he died from his injuries Sunday night, police said in a Monday afternoon update. Medical conditions weren’t available for the other two drivers, but they were stable, police added.
The crash led first responders to close the westbound lanes and redirect traffic off the highway at the Clayton Avenue exit for about seven hours. I-64 reopened around 10 a.m. Sunday.
The St. Louis police department’s accident reconstruction team is handling the ongoing investigation. No other information about the circumstances or victims was released.