Driver in the fatal crash is in serious condition at a Detroit area hospital.
DETROIT — A 22-year-old passenger was killed Tuesday after the car in which he was riding hit a pothole, lost control and crashed into a utility pole, according to Detroit police.
The driver of the Ford Focus, a 22-year-old woman, is in serious condition at a Detroit area hospital, police said. Neither victim’s name in the 12:11 a.m. ET accident on the city’s west side was released.
About 200 miles to the southwest in Daleville, Ind., a collection of deep potholes on Interstate 69 caused a multivehicle crash as drivers swerved to miss the craters.
Emergency responders were called to the area at about 9:30 a.m. ET Tuesday in the southbound lanes near the Daleville exit, about 50 miles northeast of Indianapolis, for a three-vehicle crash.
► July 16: The worst road trip annoyances and what to do about them ► December 2016: Noticing more potholes? Here’s why ► September 2015: Guerrilla pothole crew in Michigan patches up civic pride
No one was injured, according to Indiana State Police. But emergency scanner traffic noted other accidents or cars left with flat tires along the same stretch of I-69.
Both northern Indiana and southern Michigan have been experiencing up-and-down temperatures that contribute to the formation of potholes. In the first and second weeks of February, temperatures in Anderson, Ind., less than 10 miles from Daleville, started out in the 20s with some snow but climbed into the 50s some days, according to Weather Underground records.
Tuesday’s temperatures near Daleville are forecast to top 70 degrees. They’ll top 60 in Detroit.
► March 2015: Confrontation with a pothole can be costly ► February 2014: How potholes form when the snow melts
Some states such as Indiana and Michigan — but also including California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia — and the District of Columbia may reimburse drivers for pothole damage under certain conditions, which vary by locality. Other states not listed and cities also may allow vehicle owners to file claims, but the road to reimbursement is not easy.
The Indiana Department of Transportation is expected to begin fixing the potholes near Daleville as soon as officials can get a crew to the interstate area.
Contributing: Douglas Walker, The (Muncie, Ind.) Star Press. Hasan Dudar reports for the Detroit Free Press; Robin Gibson reports for The (Muncie, Ind.) Star Press. Follow Dudar and Gibson on Twitter: @h_dudar and @RobinGibsonTSP
