GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A five-vehicle crash on US-131 near Burton left three injured Monday afternoon.
The crash happened at approx. 2:40pm, when a car with a flat tire stopped in the left lane going northbound on US-131 near Burton instead of exiting the freeway or pulling to the right shoulder.
The driver of the vehicle with a flat, a 20-year-old Manistee man, was attempting to change the tire in the left lane when a rear-end, chain reaction crash occurred behind the stopped vehicle.
A 16-year-old male driver from Grand Rapids driving a pick-up truck failed to stop in time and struck the rear of both a Ford SUV driven by a 21-year-old Constantine woman and a Chevrolet SUV driven by a 60-year-old Dorr woman, who were slowing for the stopped vehicle.
A fifth vehicle, driven by a 57-year-old Kalamazoo man, then lost control trying to avoid the crash in front of him, struck the median wall, overturned, then struck the stopped vehicle with the flat tire.
The driver of the Chevrolet SUV was transported to an area hospital with injures not believed to be life-threatening.
The occupants of the overturned vehicle received what is believed to be minor injuries and would be seeking their own treatment.
The driver changing the tire was not injured, and was cited for impeding traffic.
The driver of the pickup was cited for failing to stop in an assured clear distance.
