Driver fleeing state trooper dies in 4-vehicle wreck

2 other road crashes kill 3 people in state

At least four people died in crashes on state roadways since Tuesday, according to the Arkansas State Police.

A man who fled from authorities Friday morning during a traffic stop on Interstate 40 later died in a four-vehicle crash that injured at least four other people, state police said.

According to a news release from the agency, a trooper stopped a late-model Chrysler sedan shortly after 10:30 a.m. in Lonoke County, and the driver eventually fled, heading east along the interstate.

Authorities said they chased the car until it drove out of sight. Nearly an hour later, the vehicle was spotted traveling east in the westbound lanes of the interstate, the release states.

A crash involving four vehicles happened about 11:30 a.m. about 16 miles west of Forrest City in St. Francis County, state police said.

The Chrysler struck a westbound International truck and a GMC Sierra near the 257 mile marker, according to a preliminary crash report. A fourth vehicle in the vicinity, a Lincoln MKZ, then struck an impact cushion device, the state police report said, noting that it was unclear whether the Chrysler had hit the Lincoln.

The report identified the Chrysler's driver as Russell Johnson, 39, of Sarasota, Fla. State police said he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Injured in the crash were GMC Sierra driver Ronald Fisher, 70, of Friendship, Tenn.; Nathan Davis, 27, the driver of the Lincoln; and Allie Davis, 26, and Macy Aycock, 22, passengers in the Lincoln, all of Southaven, Miss.

No one from the International truck was listed as hurt.

Two people died and four were injured Thursday evening when a vehicle carrying four minors was involved in a head-on collision in northeast Arkansas, authorities said.

The two-vehicle wreck happened at 9 p.m. on U.S. 412 near Walnut Ridge in Lawrence County, according to a preliminary state police report.

Troopers said a 37-year-old Cleveland woman identified as Latosha Coker was driving a 2004 Mazda east with four minor passengers. The vehicle crossed the centerline and hit a westbound 2017 Toyota, state police said.

The report did not say what caused the driver to cross the centerline.

Coker and a boy, whose name and age were not released, were killed in the crash, according to the report.

Three other minors in the Mazda and the Toyota's driver, 41-year old Emily Sheets of Hoxie, were listed as being hurt, though the report didn't detail the extent of their injuries.

A 28-year-old Bismarck man lost control of his vehicle and died in a crash Tuesday evening, state police said.

The wreck occurred about 6 p.m. on Thornton Ferry Road in rural Garland County.

Kevin Burks was driving a 1995 Chevrolet north on the road when he lost control of the vehicle on a curve, according to a preliminary crash report. The Chevrolet ended up in a ditch, and Burks suffered fatal injuries in the crash.

Listed as hurt were two passengers: 23-year-old Ashley Murray of Arkadelphia and 26-year-old Kara Armstrong of Lepanto.

Authorities said the weather was clear and the roads were dry at the time of all the crashes.

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Metro on 06/23/2018

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