A car caught fire, trapping its driver, in a deadly crash involving a box truck that closed a busy Delaware road for hours Tuesday.
The wreck closed DuPont Highway (U.S. Route 13) in both directions south of Bear Road, just before it merges with State Route 1 in New Castle around 11 a.m.
A burned sedan, pickup truck, box truck and a mountain bike appeared to be involved. The bike may have fallen off one of the vehicles.
Delaware State Police said it appeared that a northbound box truck slammed into Dodge Neon then struck a disabled Hyundai Tiburon and Nissan Frontier.
A 53-year-old Townsend man, identified as Eugene Downward Jr., died in the burning Dodge Neon, Delaware troopers said.
The drivers of the Frontier and Tiburon, who are both from Middletown, both suffered non-life-threatening injuries. A Connecticut woman riding in the box truck was also hurt.
The box truck driver, Harold Holloway Jr., a 62-year-old Bridgeport Connecticut man, was treated at a local hospital and released. He was charged with operation of a vehicle causing death of another person and inattentive driving and was awaiting arraignment. It was unclear if he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
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DelDOT warned motorists to avoid the area as the investigation continued for about three hours.
