LAKE COUNTY, Ind. — A 15-year-old boy may be suffering potentially life-threatening injuries after police said he was struck by a wheel that disengaged from a moving semi-truck in Northwest Indiana Tuesday morning.

Indiana State Police reported to the crash on I-80 eastbound where a vehicle was parked on the side of the road and occupants were changing a flat tire.

At the same time, a semi-truck was eastbound at the same location when, due to a mechanical issue, a wheel from the trailer disengaged from the rear tandem.

Police said the tire was still attached to the rim when it continued to travel east along the barrier wall, when it struck a 15-year-old boy that was assisting the tire change.

The boy was transported to a local hospital and later transported to a hospital in Chicago with potentially life-threatening injures.

Four other individuals outside of the vehicle sustained injures as well.

The driver of the semi-truck was transported to a local hospital for toxicology tests. Police said results are pending and intoxication is not believed to be a factor in the crash.