GRAND TRAVERSE COUNTY — A Fife Lake man was killed Thursday in an accident on U.S. 131.
The highway was closed for hours while the crash was cleaned-up and a Michigan State Police accident reconstruction team was brought in.
According to the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office, it happened shortly before 7:30 Thursday morning near Elliott Road in Fife Lake Township.
Deputies say a 21-year-old Traverse City man, driving a dark-colored Dodge Caravan was improperly passing when there was oncoming traffic. They say he side-swiped the Ford Explorer he was passing, lost control, crossed the center line, then side-swiping a box truck. That caused the box truck to cross the center line into the northbound lane where it hit a Chevy Express work van.
The 54-year-old man driving the Chevy work van was killed at the scene.
The drivers of the box truck the Ford Explorer were uninjured.
They did not release the condition of the 21-year-old driver of the Dodge Caravan.
The accident remains under investigation.