Georgia police arrested a truck driver who was involved in a multiple vehicle crash in Twiggs County, Georgia.
The accident happened on Wednesday, October 18th around 5:20 a.m.
According to NBC 41, the pileup began when one tractor trailer rear-ended another on the westbound lanes of Interstate 16, near mile marker 13.
An SUV that was traveling behind the two tractor trailers was unable to stop for the sudden collision and plowed into the two trucks before overturning on the roadway.
A third tractor trailer then approached the pileup and “hit the overturned vehicle while it was upside down in the roadway,” Georgia State Trooper Brian Jones said.
Westbound I-16 traffic has been halted since before 6 a.m. Lanes will be closed for a while. pic.twitter.com/Z31PD2vl1c
— Liz Jarvis Fabian (@liz_lines) October 18, 2017
The driver of the third tractor trailer left his vehicle to help at the scene, but fled before police arrived.
“Witnesses say that he was here. He was actually helping people get out of the vehicles and things like that. When he learned of law enforcement approaching and getting close by, he went ahead and left the scene,” Jones added.
One of the truck drivers, 57-year-old Archie March was killed in the accident. March’s passenger, as well as the driver of the SUV, were transported to a nearby hospital with non life-threatening injuries.
Because the driver of the third tractor trailer left the scene, the incident was considered a hit-and-run.
The driver of the third tractor trailer was found a short while later, in Braselton, Georgia, and taken into police custody.
The suspect’s supervisor later contacted police, claiming that the trucker “didn’t think he needed to stay around, so he left the scene.” His name has not been released.
The roadway was closed for several hours in order for crews to clear the scene, but has since reopened.