Crime

Kansas City police ID semi driver killed in fiery I-435 wreck; search for pickup continues

Fire crews responded around 8:45 a.m. Thursday to a semi-trailer fire on Interstate 435 near Interstate 470 in Kansas City.
Fire crews responded around 8:45 a.m. Thursday to a semi-trailer fire on Interstate 435 near Interstate 470 in Kansas City. KC Scout Camera

Kansas City police on Friday identified the semi truck driver killed in a fiery wreck on Interstate 435 as 52-year-old Tony Wyman as authorities continued to search for a pickup truck believed to have contributed to the crash.

Firefighters and police officers were dispatched around 8:45 a.m. Thursday to the crash site in the eastbound lanes of I-435 near Interstate 470 in south Kansas City. They came upon a fully engulfed cab of a semi, driven by Wyman, that had struck a Honda sedan while pulling two trailers.

Wyman was pronounced dead at the scene. The other driver was uninjured, police said.

Investigators determined that a pickup truck had dropped debris from its bed onto the highway. After swerving to avoid a collision, police say Wyman hit the Honda and crashed into a guard rail.

As of Friday afternoon, Kansas City police had yet to locate the pickup truck or its driver, Capt. Corey Carlisle, a department spokesman, said in a statement. Investigators were seeking a better description of the vehicle from witnesses, Carlisle said.

Kansas City police were asking anyone with information to contact traffic investigators at 816-482-8298 or the TIPS Hotline anonymously at 816-474-TIPS.

The Star’s Andrea Klick contributed to this report.

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Bill Lukitsch
The Kansas City Star
Bill Lukitsch covered nighttime breaking news for The Kansas City Star since 2021, focusing on crime, courts and police accountability. Lukitsch previously reported on politics and government for The Quad-City Times.
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