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Speed factor in crash that killed mom, 2 sons

Posted at 12:44 PM, May 30, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-30 12:44:35-04

GREENWOOD, Ind. -- Indiana State Police have released crash and reconstruction reports from a fiery I-65 crash last summer that killed a Greenwood mother and her two sons, as well as two other drivers.

The reports show unsafe speed was a factor in the crash.

The crash happened in a construction zonewhen the driver of a tanker truck, Ruslan Pankiv of Illini State Trucking Co,  rear-ended a passenger vehicle, causing a chain-reaction crash into the back of another semi.

The newly released crash report shows Pankiv was traveling between 57 and 61 mph when he slammed into the back of a Toyota Yaris, starting the deadly chain reaction in Tippecanoe County.

Records show the other vehicles involved were all stopped or in the process of stopping for construction.

The reconstruction report said Pankiv should have seen the brake lights from approximately 812 feet away, and would have only needed about 400 feet to come to a complete stop.

Investigators did not note whether Pankiv fell asleep or was distracted at the time of the crash, most likely because the fire burned much of what could typically be used as evidence.

“Due to the fire damage, no vehicle download was possible,” read the reconstruction report.

Indiana State Police investigators also did not find any skid marks that shows Pankiv attempted to stop or slow down.

Jill Buck and her two young boys, 8-year-old Aidan and 10-year-old Branson, were on their way back from Chicago when the crash happened.

PREVIOUS | 2 children among 5 dead in crash on I-65 in Tippecanoe Co.

Call 6 Investigates found the trucking company had been previously flagged by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for Hours-of-Service Compliance violations.

As of Monday, federal records show Illini State Trucking Co has had 42 Hours-of-Service violations in the last two years, including drivers on the road too long without sleeping and failing to keep their log books current.

ABC7 Chicago's investigative team has learned that Pankiv was involved in another truck crash in 2006 on I-65 near Lowell, Indiana.

A person familiar with the accident says despite stopped traffic for a jam on the highway --  Pankiv didn't slow down -- and crashed into a work truck.