A Chicago man died as a result of an early morning accident on Interstate 80 Monday morning.
Jamal R. Rodgers, 24, was pronounced dead by Bureau County Coroner Janice Wamhoff at the scene of the crash in the area of milepost 39 on I-80.
According to the accident report from District 17 Illinois State Police, Rodgers was operating a 2000 maroon Oldsmobile Bravada that was parked on the shoulder of the westbound interstate to adjust a blanket covering the broken right front window.
After re-entering I-80, he was struck in the rear by a 2012 Mazda 3 driven by Tijana Novakovic, 26, of Chicago. Rodgers’ vehicle overturned and came to rest in the ditch north of the interstate. He was partially ejected from the vehicle.
Anisse Smith, 21, of Chicago, Angelique Rogers, 20, of Chicago, Xzavier Reed, 19, of Chicago and a juvenile from Chicago, passengers in Rodgers’ car, were transported to an area hospital with minor injuries as was Novakovic. who was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid a crash and operating an electronic communication device while driving.
The Illinois State Police Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit and the Bureau County Coroner’s Office continue to investigate the crash.