A SEMI TRACTOR
TRAILER TRUCK SIDESWIPED AN UNOCCUPIED CAR OFF THE SIDE OF THE SPEED LANE ON
I-71, LOST CONTROL AND CROSSED THE MEDIAN INTO THE SOUTHBOUND LANES WHERE HE
COLLIDED HEAD-ON WITH TWO SOUTHBOUND VEHICLES KILLING ONE DRIVER AND SEVERELY
INJURING ANOTHER
January 29, 2015
Verona, KY
All lanes of Interstate 71 reopened near the I-71/75 split
just after 5 p.m. Thursday, nearly eight hours after a multi-vehicle wreck involving
a semi truck claimed the life of a Lexington, Kentucky man and critically
injured a woman in her 60s.
The crash happened about 9:30 a.m. in a southbound lane at
mile marker 73, just north of the KY 14/Verona exit.
Investigators with the Boone County Sheriff's Office say
Christopher Thornhill, 33 of Rossburg, Ohio was driving a 2009 Peterbuilt
tractor trailer northbound on I-71 when he sideswiped an unoccupied Chevrolet
Cavalier off the side of the speed lane, lost control and crossed the median into
the southbound lanes.
That’s where he collided head-on with two southbound
vehicles.
Medics pronounced the driver of a Chevrolet Silverado,
45-year-old Mark Sevilla of Lexington, dead at the scene.
Sandra Edwards, 64, of Cincinnati, was the driver of a Chevrolet
SUV crossover involved in the wreck. An Air Care helicopter crew transported
her to University of Cincinnati Medical Center with what are considered
life-threatening injuries, according to Tom Scheben, information officer for
the Boone County Sheriff's Office.
Scheben said the semi driver suffered only minor injuries.
One northbound lane reopened by 11:40 a.m. and traffic on
the second lane returned to normal at 1:30 p.m. But it wasn't until shortly
after 5 p.m. that traffic started to return to normal in the southbound
lanes.
Nancy Wood, spokesperson for the Kentucky Transportation
Cabinet, had been advising motorists throughout the day to expect "long
delays" and to "seek alternate routes." Wood initially
said she expected all lanes of the interstate to reopen by 3
p.m. but it took an additional two hours to clear the wreckage and finish up
the field investigation.
Randy Shelton said the slowdown more than tripled his
commute time.
"From Exit 55 to (the spot of the accident) it took me
an hour and a half, I reckon. It would normally take me 20 to 30 minutes."
While it's still not clear what caused the wreck, but the
initial investigation indicates all drivers were wearing their seat belts,
Scheben said. They've also determined the air bags deployed in both the
Chevrolets.
The owner of the tractor trailer is DL Winner Livestock
Express out of New Weston, Ohio. The trailer was empty at the time of the crash.