EDWARDSVILLE
Stephen P. Nonn, the Madison County coroner, has identified the two victims of the tragic vehicle crash that occurred on April 7, 2024, on Highway 159, south of Route 140, in Fort Russell Township, Illinois.
The first casualty is a 91-year-old St. Louis, Missouri resident named Delores A. Long. The coroner found that Long had been operating a 2006 Nissan Sentra. After a head-on collision, the cause of Long’s car veering into the path of a 2019 Dodge Caravan remains a mystery.
Sakina Vernor, an investigator with the Madison County Coroner’s Office, determined that Long had died at the site about 1:50 p.m. on April 7, 2024. Head, neck, and chest injuries from blunt impact is the primary cause of death for Long.
Following the completion of the standard drug and alcohol testing, an official decision of the cause of death will be made. The details of Long’s funeral service are currently being finalized. As for the second victim, her name is Julie L. Schroeder and she lives in Bloomingdale, Illinois. She is 63 years old.
Seated restrained in the 2019 Dodge Caravan, Schroeder was a passenger facing the left rear. She was transported from the scene to Alton Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Room with the help of the Alton Memorial Ambulance Service. It was determined that Schroeder had died by the emergency department physician around 2:20 p.m. on April 7, 2024.
Injury to the head, chest, and abdomen from blunt force trauma was the initial cause of death determined for Schroeder.
Following the completion of the standard drug and alcohol testing, an official decision of the cause of death will be made. The details of Schroeder’s funeral service are still being ironed out.
The investigation into the collision’s cause is ongoing by the Madison County Coroner’s Office and the Illinois State Police Crash Reconstruction Unit. Given the tragic circumstances, the Office of the Coroner extends its deepest sympathies to all those impacted.
