UPDATE: Speedway firefighter injured in wrong-way I-69 crash has successful surgery, faces months of recovery

Staff report

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — October 27, 2025

Speedway Fire Department Private Solomon Dillard-Rynard, 29, who was seriously injured in a head-on crash on I-69 north of Bloomington early Saturday, underwent successful surgery and is expected to make a full recovery, the department said in a Facebook post.

The post said Dillard-Rynard’s leg “was set and circulation is good.” He is expected to remain hospitalized for at least a week and be off work for three to four months. The department added that he was driving to his shift when the collision occurred and thanked community members and fellow departments for their support.

Indiana State Police previously identified the wrong-way driver as Johnathon S. Clark, 33, of Nashville, who died after his southbound 2016 Jeep Wrangler struck Dillard-Rynard’s northbound 2011 GMC Sierra near the 126.5-mile marker around dawn Saturday, Oct. 25. Both vehicles came to rest in the median, and the Jeep overturned and caught fire. Troopers and deputies used extinguishers to keep the flames from fully engulfing the Jeep, ISP said.

Dillard-Rynard, of Bloomington, was taken to IU Health Bloomington with serious injuries. The ISP Reconstruction Team is investigating. All northbound lanes of I-69 later reopened after several hours of closures and detours.

How to help

Donations to support medical bills, lost income, and rehabilitation can be made through The Yard Foundation’s campaign for Solomon Rynard here: theyardfoundation.org/mayday/urgent-support-needed-for-firefighter-solomon-rynard

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