Around 4:20pm on Friday, May 30th, a car that failed to slow down ahead of stopped traffic caused a five-car collision on Missouri 5, five miles north of Ava in Douglas County, Missouri. As a vehicle was traveling northbound on MO-5, it began to slow down to turn left off of the road. A Chevrolet Silverado failed to slow down with everyone else, and forcefully rear-ended a Jeep Patriot. The Patriot then hit a Ram truck from behind and ran off the road. The Silverado continued, hitting a Chevrolet HHR, before finally coming to a rest and stopping. At the same time, a GMC Canyon was traveling in the opposite lane, and while swerving in an effort to avoid the massive collision, ran off the side of the road and struck a tree. Both the Silverado and the Patriot were totaled in the collision. The driver of the Patriot, 37-year-old woman, sustained serious injuries in the crash and was taken by ambulance to a local hospital. The woman was not wearing her seatbelt.
One careless mistake by the Silverado driver changed everything in an instant. By failing to slow down for stopped traffic, they didn’t just make a dangerous decision, they broke the law. That single act of negligence led to a devastating five-car pileup, seriously injuring an woman and totaling multiple vehicles. Families are left outraged, knowing this tragedy could have been prevented with even the smallest amount of caution. Missouri law is clear: drivers must maintain a safe following distance and adjust their speed to conditions. When someone violates these rules, they put lives at risk—and they must be held fully accountable for the damage they cause.