Nebraska State Patrol said one person is dead after a semi truck overturned into the water at Mormon Island State Recreation Area in Grand Island.
When deputies arrived on scene they found the driver inside and began taking life saving measures until they determined he was dead.
On Thursday, the Hall County Sheriff’s Office identified the driver as 69-year-old Verlin Hunt, of Battlefield, MO.
It happened around 5:40 p.m. when a truck left the interstate just east of the Grand Island interchange.
HCSO said preliminary investigation shows the truck was traveling eastbound on I-80 when it crossed all lanes of traffic and proceeded down a steep embankment and into the lake.
NSP said on scene they didn’t believe the rain conditions were a factor.
The sheriff’s office said alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the crash. Hunt was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the accident.
The Hall County Sheriff’s Office, Grand Island Fire Department, Doniphan Fire, Nebraska State Patrol and Nebraska Games & Parks are all on the scene. A Southern Power crew was also on scene repairing a power line that was damaged in the accident.
An accident reconstruction team was called in to the scene, and will continue to investigate.
As a result of the crash, diesel was released into the lake. An environmental cleanup team is addressing environmental concerns.
Lake 1 and the beach at Mormon Island SRA is temporarily closed.
