Multi-vehicle accident near Mattoon along I-57

August 2, 2023 69 1

MATTOON — The Illinois State Police is alerting drivers of an accident that has occurred in Coles County near Mattoon.

Troop 7 troopers are on the scene of a minor multi-vehicle personal injury crash on Interstate 57 southbound near milepost 182. That is two miles south of Mattoon and milepost 184, which is the Illinois Route 16 exit.

Both lanes of southbound traffic are currently blocked while efforts to recover the vehicles are underway. Southbound traffic will be diverted onto Illinois Route 45 at exit 184.

Commuters should avoid the area whenever possible. Troop 7 will provide updates as progress is made.

An update at 1:39 p.m., ISP reported a crash amidst the backed-up traffic. As a result, Troopers are working on diverting traffic from I-57 South at Exit 192. This is Coles County 1000 North. Traffic can continue west then south on Route 45. They will be able to re-enter I-57 traffic at Exit 184 on the south side of Mattoon.

Ongoing updates

UPDATE 5:22 p.m.: Both lanes of Interstate 57 South from Exit 184 southbound are open per an update from ISP shortly after 4 p.m. Meanwhile, I-57 between Exit 192 and Exit 184 where an accident occurred in the traffic backup will remain closed. This will likely be for several hours while they investigate the initial and subsequent crashes.

Southbound traffic on I-57 will need to exit at Exit 192, the previously-mentioned Coles County 1000 North road. Traffic can continue southbound on I-57 at Exit 184.

UPDATE 6:30 p.m.: Another crash in the backup is resulting in further traffic diversions. Until a lane is available to be opened, southbound traffic on I-57 will now need to divert at Exit 203. This exit is at Arcola and Illinois Route 133. Traffic remains closed on the interstate between Exits 184 and 192.

UPDATE 8:30 p.m.: An update from ISP at 8:20 p.m. would report that traffic was no longer being diverted through Exit 203 through Arcola. Traffic diversion continues at Exit 192.

UPDATE 10:10 p.m.: At 10:03 p.m., ISP reports that all southbound lanes on Interstate 57 are back open.

For more local news, follow Heartland Newsfeed at @HLNF_Bulletin on Twitter.

Additionally, you can follow Heartland Newsfeed on Facebook and Reddit among other platforms. You can now follow our news updates on Telegram, Flote, and MeWe.

Support independent journalism. Become a patron on Patreon for as little as $1 a month. There are other donor options as well.

Get the latest news updates on our radio network via Spreaker, TuneIn, and other platforms.