Truck Driver Injured in Highway 30 Crash

A chain-reaction accident early Wednesday afternoon in a construction zone injured the driver of a food truck, damaged a pair of state vehicles and forced the closure of Highway 30 east of St. Clair for more than an hour.

Injured was Steven A. Cain, 49, of Cuba. He was the driver of the U.S. Foods truck that crashed into the rear of a Missouri Department of Transportation truck that was parked in the eastbound lane of Highway 30 on the bridge that crosses Little Meramec Creek just west of Oak Grove Church Road. Cain was transported by St. Clair Ambulance to St. Anthony’s Medical Center.

According to the Missouri Highway Patrol, Cain was eastbound on Highway 30 at 12:14 p.m. Wednesday when for unknown reasons he crashed his 1997 Freightliner U.S. Foods truck into the rear of a parked MoDOT 2006 International truck. The impact of the crash forced the MoDOT truck into another MoDOT 2006 International truck.

The drivers of the MoDOT vehicles, Timothy M. Werner, 35, and Curtis R. Dunakey, 49, both of St. Clair, were not injured. All three men were wearing safety belts.

Emergency responders at the scene said MoDOT employees were doing bridge work at the time of the accident, and traffic was limited to one lane in the construction zone. The MoDOT trucks were parked in the eastbound lane of the highway on or near the bridge when the crash occurred. A traffic signal was controlling traffic from both directions at the time and allowing it to pass in the westbound lane.

The trucks involved and debris from the crash were spread across both lanes of Highway 30 along the bridge, blocking both lanes. Several additional MoDOT employees were called to the scene.

While Highway 30 was closed, traffic was rerouted around the scene using county roads.

The patrol said damage to all three vehicles was minor.