Two accidents east of Cheyenne Sunday morning resulted in one death and injuries to three others.

The first accident occurred around 7:45 a.m. when a tractor-trailer, headed eastbound on Interstate 80 at about 65 mph, lost control and jack-knifed into a pickup truck pulling a trailer traveling in the other lane.

Both vehicles wound up in the median, with the larger vehicle’s cab resting on top of the pickup, pinning and crushing the occupants inside

The driver of the pickup truck, David E. Williams, 54, of Lindenwood, Ill., died on the scene, while the other three occupants n Andrew J. Krause, 35, of Lasalle, Ill.; Joel A. Detig, 21, of Lindenwood; and Daniel R. Carmichael, 26, of Rochelle, Ill. n were injured and taken to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for treatment.

Of that group, Carmichael was airlifted to a hospital in Denver for treatment.

The driver of the tractor-trailer, Tonja S. Morale, 58, and her passenger, Samuel J. Morale, 63, both of Grand Prairie, Texas, were not hospitalized.

A Highway Patrol news release indicated that the roads were icy with blowing snow at the time of the crash.

Laramie County Fire District 6 deputy fire chief Riley McNamar said it was an extensive process to free those trapped in the truck.

“It took us about three hours to get them out of there, and we were working in the space between the semi-truck cab and trailer, cutting in,” McNamar said. “It’s been a long time since we had a call like that.”

Another crash, involving five tractor-trailers and several smaller vehicles, occurred to the west of the first crash around 8:30 a.m. That incident apparently occurred as drivers slowed down to navigate the first crash

These accidents forced the closure of the eastbound and westbound I-80 lanes from Cheyenne to the Wyoming/Nebraska state line for about six hours

In all, the Wyoming Highway Patrol and Laramie County Fire Districts 2, 4 and 6 responded to the calls.

All information on the first crash will be turned over to the Laramie County District Attorney’s Office, which will make a final determination as to whether anyone will face criminal charges.