Preliminary investigation revealed the left rear tandem tires came off a flatbed trailer axle hauled by a 2017 Freightliner headed south in Interstate 75 that was driven by Lyndon Hershberger, 59, of Winchester.
The tires went through the median and into the northbound lanes, where they sideswiped a 2020 Dodge Caravan driven by Lyle Prewitt, 54, of Union City, Indiana, and then hit the Chevrolet van head-on, troopers said.
Two more passengers in the van, 58-year-old James Keller of Franklin and 71-year-old Ray Adams of Morrow, were taken to Miami Valley Hospital with serious injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening, the patrol said.
Hershberger, Prewitt, and another passenger in the van, Charles Backus III, 79, of Centerville, were not injured.
The crash on I-75 was the second double-fatal crash within 12 hours on Monday in the area.
A vehicle around 12:30 a.m. crashed into a tree in the median on Riverside Drive near East Hillcrest Avenue in Dayton.
The two crash victims, whose identities have not been released, were pronounced dead at the scene, Dayton police said.
Both crashes remain under investigation.
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