Police identify Mason High School student killed in wrong-way crash on I-71

Editor's Note: This story has been updated with information sent by the highway patrol.

The identity of the Mason High School student killed in a crash on Interstate 71 on Thursday was released by the Ohio State Highway Patrol Friday.

Chad Samuel Case, 17, was driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee the wrong way on Interstate 71 when he struck a semi tractor-trailer just before 2 a.m. in Deerfield Township, investigators said.

"We are grieving the loss of a Mason High School student who was in a tragic car crash on I-71 early this morning," a statement from the school district said. "Grief can manifest in many ways, and it's crucial that we recognize and honor our own feelings and those of others."

The district said therapists and therapy dogs would be available at the high school on Friday.

After the crash, both vehicles veered off the roadway and the tractor-trailer overturned, the patrol said. The tractor-trailer's driver was taken by ambulance to the Kings Mills Hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening, while the teen died of his injuries at the scene.

The patrol's investigation into the crash is ongoing.

While wrong-way collisions make up a small fraction of all car crashes, they are 40 times more likely to end in death, state officials say. State traffic data show that such crashes are rising in Ohio, with 182 wrong-way crashes occurring on divided highways in the state last year.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Mason High School student killed in wrong-way crash on I-71