Authorities have said that a couple who drove off of a bridge in Indiana may have been following their GPS navigation system when the accident occurred.
The Chicago Sun Times reported that the Lake County sheriff’s office said that the crash happened around 9:30 a.m. Saturday.
Iftikhar Hussain, 64, survived the almost 38 foot fall and exited the vehicle, but when the car burst into flames Zohra Hussain, 51, was still in the passenger seat and died.
Police have said that the Chicago couple was likely following the directions of their GPS before they drove off of the Cline Avenue Bridge. The navigation system may have told them to continue onto Cline Avenue. The bridge has been closed since 2009.
The NWI Times noted that there were barriers and signs alerting travelers that the bridge was not passable, but Hussain drove around them.
"The Cline Avenue bridge is marked with numerous barricades including orange barrels and cones, large wood signs stating ‘ROAD CLOSED’ with orange striped markings," the sheriff's department spokeswoman Patricia Van Til said. "There are concrete barricades across the road to further indicate the road is closed."
Five years ago the Indiana Department of Transportation condemned the bridge.