Lost load from commercial vehicle may have triggered crash that killed three including Oklahoma trooper on I-35, investigators say

Three people were killed in a crash in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, including an Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) trooper and a child.

The crash occurred at 11:27 a.m. on April 8, 2026, as a vehicle traveling southbound on I-35 lost control and crossed the center cable barrier.

The out-of-control vehicle struck Trooper Vernon Brake as he was traveling in the northbound lanes of I-35, OHP said.

Brake died at the scene.

“The driver of the other involved vehicle, along with a four-year-old passenger, were also pronounced deceased at the scene,” said OHP.

In an interview after the crash, OHP Trooper Mark Southall said that it is believed that the southbound vehicle driver swerved to avoid an object lost by a commercial vehicle in the roadway.

“At some point, a commercial motor vehicle lost some type of equipment or load or some type of debris onto the roadway,” Southall said.

It isn’t clear whether the southbound driver was swerving to avoid the commercial vehicle debris directly or to avoid a traffic slowdown caused by the debris, Southall said.

OHP’s Traffic Homicide Unit is conducting the investigation into the crash.

Troopers are asking for public help in locating the commercial vehicle that lost the object on I-35. Anyone with information is asked to call OHP Communications at 405-425-2323.

Trooper Brake served with Troop S (commercial motor vehicle enforcement) during his nearly 20 years with OHP.