MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. - State troopers said a drunk driver caused a wreck that killed a mailman overnight on Interstate 85 in west Charlotte.
Police said that around 5 a.m. the drunk driver stopped in the middle of the interstate, near Sam Wilson Road.
A tractor-trailer skidded to a stop to avoid hitting that car and that's when troopers said the mailman, identified as 60-year-old Calvin Hazel Jr., rear-ended the truck. His vehicle then caught fire.
Hazel died at the scene, possibly burned alive.
Channel 9 spoke with a viewer who drove by moments after the crash, who said knowing that someone died was heartbreaking.
“I just can’t imagine what those people went through, and all I kept thinking about was the cars behind me because I was afraid it would be a chain reaction,” said Virginia Lethco.
Hazel was driving a U.S. Postal Service vehicle and delivering mail when he died.
The alleged drunk driver is charged with driving while impaired. Their name has not been released.
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A fiery crash early morning killed one driver on I-85 near the Catawba River on Saturday morning.
By WBTV
A person was killed in a crash that shut down all lanes on I-85 northbound near Sam Wilson Road early Saturday morning.
Highway Patrol says a driver slammed into the back of a semi truck just before 5 a.m. The car went up in flames.
Troopers confirmed one person died.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said they are searching for another driver involved in the crash that fled the scene.
The names of those involved have not been released.