I-74 fatal crash victim near Bloomington identified

Posted on November 15, 2023

By Neil Doyle

BLOOMINGTON – McLean County Coroner Kathy Yoder has identified the victim of a fatal crash that happened Monday morning on Interstate 74 near Bloomington.

38-year-old Demario L. Coleman of Tampa, Florida died from probable carbon monoxide due to inhalation of smoke and soot and thermal burns, according to preliminary autopsy results. Toxicology testing is pending.

The coroner’s office said Coleman was the driver of a semi-truck that left the roadway, overturned, and caught fire.

The semi-truck struck other vehicles in the accident. Authorities said two other people were taken to the hospital for injuries.

This incident remains under investigation by the McLean County Coroner’s office, Illinois State Police, and the Bloomington Fire Department.

Neil Doyle can be reached at [email protected]

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…