Cody Thomas
Nebraska State Patrol
Elm Creek, Neb. - Two separate accidents occurred on I-80 near the same location Sunday afternoon near Elm Creek. The second accident that occurred resulted in the death of a truck driver. I-80 was closed for several hours.
The first crash occurred at approximately 9:45 a.m. Sunday, near mile marker 257 on I-80. The crash occurred when a pickup rear-ended a semi in the construction zone. The driver of the pickup suffered non-life-threatening injuries. A child also suffered minor injuries. I-80 was closed for approximately 90 minutes.
The second crash occurred at approximately 12:30 p.m. Sunday, near the same location. This occurred when a semi was parked on the westbound shoulder, in the two-lane construction zone. Another semi, hauling a piece of ag equipment, struck the semi that was parked on the shoulder, causing the ag equipment to enter the eastbound lanes and strike an oncoming semi.
The driver of the eastbound semi was killed in the crash. He has been identified as Viacheslav Nadolinkskii, 49, of Dallas, North Carolina. The drivers of both westbound semis suffered minor injuries and have since been released from the hospital. Troopers are conducting a full crash reconstruction and commercial vehicle post-crash investigation. I-80 was closed for about 5 hours.
NSP was assisted in these incidents by the Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office, Dawson County Sheriff’s Office, Kearney Police Department, Nebraska Department of Transportation, and local EMS.