1 dead after crash

WOODVILLE TWP. — A man is dead after a three-car crash in Sandusky County on Sunday. Just after midnight, first responders were called to a crash near milepost 77 of the Ohio Turnpike. That location is near the Blue Heron rest area. The crash sequence, according to a media release from the Ohio Highway Patrol, is as follows: • A 20-year-old Sandusky man was driving a Ford Mustang eastbound in the right lane. • Roderick Rife, 69, of Sterling Heights, Michigan, was also eastbound while driving an International semi. • The Mustang contacted the rear of the semi then went into the middle lane and struck a Ford Bronco driven by a 47-year-old University Heights man. • The semi and the Mustang then went off-road to the left and struck a concrete median wall. • The semi then caught fire. Rife died at the scene, the release states. The Mustang's driver was taken to a Toledo hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The Bronco's driver was not injured. Both eastbound and westbound lanes of the turnpike were closed for about an hour, the release states. Eventually, the right lanes were reopened to allow some traffic flow. The release did not state if alcohol and/or drugs were factors in the crash. Troopers continue to investigate. No citations have been issued as of Monday.