Update (February 5, 2026): Authorities have identified the person killed in this accident as Edward Cervenansky, 34, of Three Lakes.

Vilas County, WI — January 27, 2026, one person was killed in a truck accident at about 10:30 a.m. on U.S. Highway 51/Korean War Veterans Memorial Highway.

Authorities said a Chevrolet pickup was heading south near Trapp Road when it lost control and crashed head-on with a northbound Kenworth dump truck.

The 34-year-old man driving the pickup died at the scene of the crash near Woodruff, according to authorities. His name has not been made public yet.

The dump truck driver was not injured, authorities said.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the Vilas County crash at this time.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When most people read about a pickup truck crossing the center line and hitting a dump truck head-on, they assume the case is closed. It sounds like a tragic mistake by the pickup driver and not much more. But I’ve been handling these kinds of cases for over 30 years, and I can tell you things are rarely that simple.

The real question here is: What caused the pickup to lose control? Until that’s answered, no one can say with certainty what really happened; or who, if anyone, may share responsibility.

It’s not clear from current reports whether road conditions were a factor. Was there ice or snow on the highway that morning? If so, were road crews out in time to sand or plow? Winter driving conditions often get blamed for crashes, but sometimes the more serious failure lies in how poorly those conditions were handled.

It’s also unclear what the dump truck driver was doing in the moments before impact. Depending on whether the pickup veered suddenly or had been sliding for some distance, different questions arise. Did the truck driver have time to react? Was he traveling at an appropriate speed given the conditions? Without dash cam footage or black box data from the truck, we’re left guessing.

That’s why real investigation is essential in a crash like this. The dump truck's engine control module can show how fast it was going, whether the brakes were applied and if the driver made any steering corrections. Call records, in-cab camera footage and witness statements may also help answer the key question: Was there any chance this crash could have been avoided?

Sometimes, when all the facts are in, it turns out the initial story wasn't the full story. I’ve seen cases where a vehicle “lost control” because of a mechanical failure caused by poor maintenance, or because someone had improperly repaired the brakes weeks earlier. In other cases, people were too quick to blame a single driver when more than one party made critical mistakes.

That’s why we can’t just accept early assumptions as truth. It takes work to get answers. But if someone’s life has been lost, that work is the least anyone can do.

Key Takeaways:

• The cause of the pickup truck losing control remains an open question.
• It’s unclear what role, if any, road conditions or the dump truck driver’s actions played.
• Investigative tools like black box data and in-cab cameras are critical to understanding what happened.
• Initial reports often miss important details; full accountability requires thorough evidence gathering.
• Real legal insight begins where assumptions end.