SAGINAW COUNTY, Mich. -- Authorities say a Michigan State Police trooper has been killed in a rollover crash near Birch Run while on his way to help Saginaw County sheriff's deputies chase a motorist.
Trooper Jeffrey Werda, 43, from the Bridgeport post was responding to a call for backup when he crashed Wednesday in Saginaw County's Taymouth Township.
The single-vehicle crash occurred at about 1:30 a.m. on Birch Run Road west of Moorish Road.
A passerby noticed the police cruiser in a drainage ditch and called 911. Werda was transported to Covenant Hospital in Saginaw where he was pronounced dead.
"On behalf of the men and women of the Michigan State Police, I send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of trooper Jeffery Werda," said Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue, director of the Michigan State Police. "This is a great loss to our state police family, all of law enforcement and the citizens of Michigan."
The chase began in the Chesaning area after authorities tried to stop a motorist for an equipment violation, and the motorist later was caught, according to police.
Police said Werda was an 10-year state police veteran who had worked at the Bridgeport post for about four years.
Birch Run Road was closed for several hours as crews worked to clear the scene.
An accident reconstruction team was also called to the crash scene. A cause for the crash has yet to be determined, police said.
Werda was alone in his vehicle at the time of the crash.
