REO Speedwagon rocker Terry Luttrell sustains horror crash injuries after falling asleep at the wheel

Terry Luttrell of REO Speedwagon is on the mend after surviving a terrifying car crash over the weekend.

The rocker, who is the band’s original lead singer, rolled his vehicle after he fell asleep at the wheel on Interstate 57 in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois on Sunday morning, according to the News-Gazette.

The airbag deployed during the crash, causing Luttrell to sustain a cracked sternum. 

Luttrell, 78, described the horror incident in a phone call with the outlet from his hospital bed, revealing he awoke from the crash surrounded by the airbags. 

The crash occurred following a long night which saw Luttrell perform at the State Farm Center with his band followed by autograph-signing at an afterparty. 

Luttrell left the party at 2AM and didn’t get to bed until 4:30AM.

Terry Luttrell of REO Speedwagon is on the mend after surviving a car crash; pictured 1977

But his rest was short-lived, as he was back driving just a few hours later, with the keyboard player from REO Classics following him on the road. 

While Luttrell admitted to feeling ‘a little bit sleepy’, he believed he would be fine to drive.

‘It just happened,’ the rocker said. ‘I nodded off. I rolled the car over, and I woke up and I was in a cocoon (the airbags). Unfortunately, it totaled the car.’

Luttrell was taken to the hospital and plans on remaining there for several more days to undergo rehab.  

‘I was able to get up and get out of the car,’ he told the outlet. ‘The airbag went off and cracked my sternum a little bit.

‘I have a little back pain and neck pain. It’s nothing that can’t be overcome,’ he added. 

As fate would have it, several of the nurses who cared for him attended his Saturday night concert. 

Luttrell said the concert ‘was a good show all the way around.’ 

The rocker, 78, rolled his vehicle after he fell asleep at the wheel on Interstate 57 in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois on Sunday morning, according to the News-Gazette; pictured 1977

DailyMail.com has contacted Luttrell for comment but did not immediately hear back. 

REO Speedwagon’s origins date back to 1966 when future bandmembers Neal Doughty and Alan Gratzer met as students at the University of Illinois, according to WCIA.

The band officially formed the following year after Doughty found the name of their group written on the blackboard of a class he took, WCIA reports.

Luttrell joined the group in 1967, and their eponymous first album was released in 1971. 

He then left the band after the first disc, joining another group, Starcastle, and was replaced by Kevin Cronin for their second album R.E.O./T.W.O. 

REO Speedwagon’s origins date back to 1966 when future bandmembers Neal Doughty and Alan Gratzer met as students at the University of Illinois; pictured Bruce Hall, Gary Richrath, Kevin Cronin, Alan Gratzer, and Neal Doughty in 1985

The band officially formed the following year after Doughty found the name of their group written on the blackboard of a class he took; the band pictured circa 1970

In 1980, the band released Hi Infidelity, which increased their exposure to the pop market with the hits Keep On Lovin’ You, Take It On The Run, In Your Letter and Don’t Let Him Go.

The record spent 15 weeks at the top of Billboard’s 200 chart and sold more than 10 million copies.

Their 1984 album, Wheels Are Turnin’ introduced fans to the chart topper Can’t Fight This Feeling along with hit singles I Do Wanna Know and One Lonely Night.

The band’s line-up has changed over the years, and in September 2024 they announced they decided to call it quits after 57 years together, citing ‘irreconcilable differences.’