Southfield teen seriously injured in 3-vehicle crash after truck hauling heavy equipment slams into SUV making left-hand turn in St. Clair County

ST. CLAIR COUNTY (WWJ) - A 14-year-old passenger from Southfield sustained serious injuries and was taken out-of-county for medical care after a truck hauling a skid steer struck and pushed an SUV into another vehicle on Thursday evening in St. Clair County.

The St. Clair County said deputies, along with the Fort Gratiot Fire Department and Tri Hospital EMS, were called out around 4:35 p.m. to the 4100 block of 24th Avenue in Fort Gratiot Township on reports of a serious car crash.

When crews arrived at the scene, the found three vehicles had collided into one another at a traffic signal just south of the McDonald's in the 4100 block of 24th Avenue.

As they investigated, deputies said that a northbound 2007 Dodge Durango -- driven by a 47-year-old Warren man and carrying a 17-year-old male front seat passenger from Warren, a 15-year-old female rear seat passenger from Warren and a 14 year-old rear seat passenger from Southfield -- tried to make a left-hand turn at the traffic light, but was struck by an oncoming 2007 Dodge Ram, towing a trailer hauling a skid-steer loader.

The Durango was hit in the rear passenger door and the force of the crash pushed it into a 2017 Mitsubishi that was stopped at the traffic signal waiting to pull out of a shopping complex onto northbound 24th Ave.

The 14-year-old rear seat passenger in the Durango was seriously injured in the crash and was rushed to hospital out of the county for further medical care, deputies said.

The driver of the Ram, identified as a 59-year-old man from Casco Township, was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the collision and sustained a possible head injury. A 12-year-old passenger from Kimball Township was also in the truck, but was unhurt.

The two occupants in the Mitsubishi escaped the incident without injury.

The St. Clair County Sheriff's Office Accident Investigation Team is still investigating the crash to determine the at-fault driver.

"Witness accounts are varied about the status of the traffic signal and further investigation is underway to determine possible right-of-way violations," the sheriff's office said.

At this time, neither alcohol nor drugs are believed to be factors in the crash.

No other information was released.