Butler man was victim
MIDDLESEX TWP — Authorities say the man who died in an accident on Route 8 Wednesday morning was not wearing a seat belt.
Kristofer Schmitt, 57, of Butler died shortly after his Honda Fit was struck by a tractor-trailer and then a pickup truck, Deputy Coroner John Hanovick said Wednesday afternoon.
Schmitt was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected from the car, Hanovick said. He performed an autopsy Wednesday afternoon and ruled the cause of death to be head and chest injuries.
The accident happened shortly before 8 a.m. on Route 8 near the intersection with Cruikshank Road.
Police believe a tractor-trailer driving northbound crossed into southbound traffic, said Sgt. Randy Ruediger, Middlesex Township police officer in charge.
It struck the Honda first, then a southbound Ford pickup truck struck both the tractor-trailer and the Honda, Ruediger said. The tractor-trailer ended up down an embankment.
A Mercedes sedan, also southbound, was able to nearly come to a stop, but did hit the pickup truck.
The tractor-trailer, owned by DTA LP of Kennerdell, Venango County, was driven by Robert McCauley of Oil City, Venango County. He was taken to Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh with what police described as moderate to severe injuries. Fire and EMS responders used ropes and a basket to get him from his vehicle and up a 75-yard embankment to the road so he could be transported in an ambulance. The hospital listed his condition as fair this morning.
The trailer was full of coal, which police determined was non-toxic. A man who answered the phone at the company's garage declined to comment.
The pickup truck driver, Michael Reutzel of Butler, also suffered severe injuries. His condition was unknown this morning.
“He was laying on the roadway when I got there, but I am not sure if he was ejected,” Ruediger said.
The Mercedes driver, Michael Nanni of Butler, was not injured.
Route 8 was reopened to traffic at 7:15 p.m. Wednesday after being closed for nearly 12 hours.
A tow company with heavy equipment was able to pull the tractor-trailer back to the road after crews partially unloaded the coal from the trailer. There was still some debris being cleaned up today.
Ruediger said that the state Department of Transportation, as well as numerous nearby police and fire departments, pitched in at the scene and with directing traffic.
“With closing Route 8 like that, that's the first time I've seen it totally closed for 12 hours — usually we are able to get one direction flowing,” he said.
“That helped us out tremendously.”
Middlesex, Penn and Saxonburg fire departments and the Penn and Adams Township police, state police and the Butler County Sheriff's office all assisted.
The investigation is continuing into the cause of the accident and evidence will eventually be forwarded to the district attorney, who will determine if any charges will be filed in the case, he said.
