One individual was killed and multiple others were injured during a fatal accident along Interstate 75 on Tuesday afternoon that closed lanes on the highway for an extended period of time.
The fatal accident took place near mile marker 358 in the southbound lanes of I-75 on Tuesday, November 12.
According to a report by the Florida Highway Patrol, a 40-year-old Immokalee man was driving a Honda van southbound on I-75, near mile marker 358, on the inside lane of the highway at around 3:20 p.m.
For unknown reasons, the vehicle veered off the roadway and drove into the center grass median before the driver overcorrected and reentered the highway.
Upon reentering the highway, the van continued in a “southwesterly direction across” the southbound lanes of the highway and into the merge lane entrance from State Road 326.
As the van was driving across the southbound lanes, a 59-year-old Hallandale Beach man driving a semi-truck attempted to veer right to avoid a collision with the vehicle.
The truck driver’s attempt was unsuccessful and, as a result, the front of the semi-truck collided with the right side of the van.
Both vehicles came to final rest on the west shoulder of the highway.
According to FHP, one of the passengers from the van was pronounced deceased at the scene. No details were provided regarding the individual’s age or gender.
Two additional unidentified passengers were taken to a local hospital in Ocala in critical condition.
The driver of the van suffered serious injuries from the accident, while the truck driver suffered minor injuries, according to the FHP report.
The fatal accident caused the closure of the southbound lanes of I-75 near mile marker 358 for an extended period as representatives from FHP, Marion County Fire Rescue, and the Florida Department of Transportation cleared the scene. Traffic was slow near the scene well into the evening.