A piece of construction equipment was left blocking Interstate 10 early Thursday morning, causing a fatal wreck involving two semi trucks and a passenger vehicle.
The accident happened on December 21st at approximately 2:22 a.m. in El Paso, Texas.
El Paso police say that a 2016 red Peterbilt semi truck pulling a tanker trailer was traveling east on I-10 in the inside lane when it struck a piece of construction equipment that was sticking out, over the roadway. The impact caused damage to the truck’s driver side, forcing the truck driver to pull over and exit his vehicle to check out the damage.
Then, a second tractor trailer struck the piece of construction equipment, this time a 2017 Freightliner semi truck pulling a white Great Dane trailer. The construction equipment pierced the Freightliner’s cab, striking the unidentified truck driver and pushing him into the sleeper berth of the cab, where a passenger was resting. The force of the impact then ejected passenger Keserie Paredes, but the Freightliner rig kept going, striking an SUV and pushing it into the stopped Peterbilt truck. The unidentified Freightliner driver then rolled out of the wrecked rig and out into the roadway.
Both the unidentified Freightliner driver and Paredes were killed in the crash. No other injuries were reported according to the El Paso Times.
Police say that a construction vehicle was parked in the center median between I-10 east and west and that the conveyor arm was protruding approximately 4 feet into the I-10 east inside lane, causing the fatal accident.
I-10 east at the Americas Avenue exit was shut down until around noon as officials worked to investigate the crash and clear the debris. It has since been reopened.
A piece of equipment sticking out of a construction vehicle parked in the median is to blame for a deadly wreck along I-10 in far east El Paso, according to El Paso police.
STORY: https://t.co/ESbyPYqLzt pic.twitter.com/iiHzs7up9Y— CBS4Local (@CBS4Local) December 22, 2017
