Carbondale Alerts
Carbondale Police Press Release - Fatal Traffic Crash
NEWS RELEASE
City of Carbondale, Illinois
12-04-23
For Immediate Release
CARBONDALE – On December 4, 2023 at 7:45 a.m., City of Carbondale police officers responded to the 1500 block of North Illinois Avenue for a traffic crash. The initial information provided was that a bus was involved. The investigation revealed that the school bus was not impacted during the crash and no one on the bus was injured. However, two trucks did collide in a head on crash that occurred near the bus. The lone occupant of the vehicle that was southbound suffered serious injuries. He was transported to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale by the Jackson County Ambulance Service. The two individuals that were in the northbound vehicle were found to be deceased as a result of the collision. Multiple agencies, including the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, the De Soto Police Department, the Carbondale Fire Department, Carbondale Public Works Department, and the Illinois State Police assisted in this investigation.
North Illinois Avenue is open again for all traffic.
The Jackson County Coroner’s Office identified Wolfgang W. Gustaveson, 19 years old of Park Ridge, Illinois, and Francis M. Martinez, 18 years old of Des Plaines, Illinois, as the two men who lost their lives as a result of the traffic crash. They were both attending Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, and living on campus in Carbondale. The City of Carbondale is extremely sorry for the loss of these young men, and extends our deepest sympathy to their families and loved ones.
Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to contact the City of Carbondale Police Department at (618) 549-2121. You may also call the Carbondale/SIU Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (618) 549-COPS (2677) or the Murphysboro/Jackson County anonymous tip line at (618) 687-COPS (2677). Anonymous tips may also be made by selecting the “Crime Stoppers” tab on this website’s main page. Please help yourself and your county, its communities, and the university campus by using these numbers if you witness or have any information about a crime. Cash rewards for information that leads to an arrest are also made anonymously. Remember, crime doesn’t pay, but Crime Stoppers does!
The mission of the Carbondale Police Department is to work in partnership with our community to preserve life, protect human rights, protect property and improve quality of life by providing police service to all in a fair, sensitive, and professional manner.