Authorities this morning ordered a traffic shutdown north of the Wayland exit of U.S.-131 because of fatal vehicle-pedestrian crash.
Officials with the Michigan Department of Transportation have confirmed that at least one person was killed in the northbound lane of the expressway. The incident occurred his morning just before 10 a.m.
There have been reports the decreased was found on the side of the highway.
Allegan County Central Dispatch acknowledged the northbound lanes of the highway were closed at mile marker 64 for two to three hours.
Capt. Scott Mattice with the Allegan County Sheriff’s office reported that investigators suspect a body found on the side of the road around 8 a.m. was connected to a car-deer crash reported three hours earlier. Mattice indicated investigators believe the driver who reported hitting a deer around 5 a.m. actually hit a person.
Authorities are trying to determine if the victim is a motorist who crashed in the same area around 2:18 a.m. They believe he was likely the driver of the vehicle that crashed on northbound US-131 around that time. The vehicle had been reported to be driving erratically, crashing shortly after. When deputies arrived at the scene of the crash, they found the driver had fled the scene.
“The subject was wearing dark clothing with no reflective surfaces and would have been extremely difficult to see in that full darkness,” the sheriff’s office stated in an official report.
Mattice said the driver who reported the car-deer crash at 5 a.m. is cooperating with the investigation.
Former Wayland Police Chief Dan Miller posted, “US 131 at the Wayland exit is shut down northbound you have to go into Wayland to Reno Drive take a right on Rainbow Drive go down to 133rd Avenue turn left go back over to South Main and go back north on South Main to get downtown or go north to the Dorr exit.”
