FROSTBURG — A Garrett County sheriff’s deputy died Tuesday night in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 68 west near Frostburg, Maryland State Police said.
Corey Douglas McElroy, 31, of Friendsville, was pronounced dead early Wednesday at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia, where he was flown by Maryland State Police helicopter.
Police said McElroy’s police-issued Ford Explorer struck the rear of a tractor-trailer near the Route 36 exit about 7:25 p.m.
Troopers said the impact sent McElroy’s unmarked vehicle into the next lane, where it was struck on the driver’s side by a Ford F-350 truck.
The interstate was closed until about 11 p.m. while the Maryland State Police Crash Team investigated the accident.
A release from Garrett County Sheriff Bryson Meyers Wednesday afternoon said McElroy was traveling home from the police academy to attend the graduation of a family member when the crash occurred.
McElroy was a Marine Corps veteran and father of two young children, Meyers said.
Firefighters from LaVale and Shaft and ambulances from the Allegany County Department of Emergency Services responded to the scene.