A truck driver was found dead in his truck in Illinois over the weekend after a Good Samaritan called 911.
The incident happened on Saturday evening, March 12th at the Petro on West Fayette Avenue in Effingham County, Illinois.
Premier Broadcasting Inc. reports that Effingham City Police and Abbott EMS received a call concerning the health of an unresponsive driver parked at the Petro from two concerned men who noticed the trucker was unresponsive. When first responders arrived, they found the trucker, 52-year-old Von Thomas Ziegler, in the driver’s seat of his truck just east of the fuel islands. They soon called the Coroner’s Officer and he was pronounced dead just after 6:30 p.m.
Officials contacted Ziegler’s next of kin and were told that Ziegler had several medical issues prior to his death, and his medical records have been requested. Ziegler’s body was then transported to a morgue where a COVID-19 test and toxicology samples were performed.
Effingham County Coroner Kim Rhodes says that Ziegler’s death appears to be from natural causes, but an investigation is still underway.
Rhodes has since thanked the two Good Samaritans for their call and says the incident is an example of “if you see something out of the ordinary, say something.”