Four Injured in Fiery Weekend Crash

Four people were injured in a fiery weekend crash on Effingham's west side.

The crash happened at 1:58pm Saturday on Fayette Avenue at the Interstates 57/70 onramp.  State police report a semi driven by 42-year-old Karen Greer of Brown Deer, Wisconsin turned off Fayette onto the onramp into the path of a pickup truck.  The driver of the pickup truck, 19-year-old Nicholas Steffen of Effingham, could not stop in time and the units collided and both units caught on fire.  Both vehicles were a total loss.

Neither driver was reported injured, but three passengers in Steffen's pickup truck were hurt.  16-year-old Dean Jansen and 15-year-old Joseph Jansen, both of Effingham, and 14-year-old Brock Shannon of Teutopolis, were each taken to St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital in Effingham for treatment. 

A passenger in Greer's semi, 41-year-old Ronald Shaw of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin, was also injured and was treated at St. Anthony's.

Greer was cited by state police for disobeying a traffic control signal, failure to reduce speed to avoid the crash and brakes out of adjustment on her vehicle.  Shaw was cited for not wearing his seat belt.