2 die in separate motorcycle crashes late Saturday

Alexandria Burris, Indianapolis Star
·2 min read
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Separate traffic fatalities claimed the lives of two motorcyclists late Saturday and shut down stretches of Interstate 465 eastbound and Interstate 70 for several hours, Indiana State Police said.

John Byers, 40, of Indianapolis and Mark Webster, 47, of Richmond were killed in the crashes.

Byers was involved in a single-vehicle motorcycle accident that occurred at I-465 eastbound near East Street on the south side of Indianapolis, police said in a news release. Emergency dispatchers received information about the crash at approximately 7:15 p.m.

First responders arrived and found Byers unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

State police said an investigation determined that Byers drove off the road and struck a construction sign on the left side of the highway near mile marker 3.2. Police said it's unclear what caused Byers to drive off the road. No other vehicles were involved.

The left lanes of I-465 were closed in this area for approximately two hours during the crash investigation. State police said they are continuing to investigate the accident.

Hours later in Hancock County, emergency crews responded around 11:59 p.m. to a multi-vehicle accident in the eastbound lanes of I-70 near mile marker 97, the press release said.

After a preliminary investigation, troopers believe Webster struck the back of a car trailer being pulled by a pickup truck that had broken down in the right lane of I-70. The area is currently a construction zone. Police said there were no emergency shoulders.

Webster was ejected into the left lane, where an eastbound car struck him and the motorcycle. A semi-tractor trailer struck the motorcycle shortly after, causing the motorcycle and eventually the semi-trailer to catch on fire. The driver of the semi-tractor trailer escaped before the fire.

Webster, who was found lying in the roadway, was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say the drivers of the other vehicles were uninjured.

The accident resulted in the closure of lanes in both direction. Police said the westbound lane reopened around 1:55 a.m. while the eastbound lane remained closed for roughly seven hours as wreckage was removed. The investigation is ongoing.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: ISP: 2 die in separate interstate motorcycle crashes late Saturday