Multi-semi pileup closes interstate

HOLMES COUNTY – Around 4:40 a.m. on Thursday, August 26, a tractor trailer(V-1) driven by a 44-year-old man from Gainesville, GA, was traveling eastbound on Interstate 10 on the inside lane at mile marker 114. A change to a northeastern direction of travel caused V-1 to go off the paved portion of the roadway on the left side. The driver then over-corrected which caused V-1 to once again change direction to traveling southeast while overturning.  

At the same time, another tractor trailer (V-2 )driven by a 61-year-old man from Hixon, TX, was traveling eastbound in the outside lane when he observed V-1 overturned in both eastbound lanes. The second driver,
in an attempt to avoid a collision began to travel in a northeast
direction when the front of V-2 collided with the bottom rear of V-1’s trailer. 

A third tractor trailer(V-3), driven by a 33-year-old man from Myrtle Beach, SC, was also traveling east in the outside lane where he observed V-1 overturned in both eastbound lanes. The driver of V-3 also began to travel in a northeast direction off the paved road into the center grass median to avoid a collision when the top right front of V-3 trailer collided with the top left rear of V-2’s trailer. 

Florida
Highway Patrol said in a release that V-1 came to a final rest in both
eastbound travel lanes on its left side facing in a southwestern direction. V-2 came to final rest partially in the inside westbound travel lane with the trailer in the center grass median facing in a southeastern direction. 

FHP
states that after the initial impact with V-2, V-3 continued traveling
in a northeastern direction across both westbound travel lanes. V-3 then
came to a controlled stop on the northern shoulder of Interstate 10, facing in an eastern direction. 

The only injuries reported were minor for the driver of V-1. The drivers of V-2 and V-3 were both reportedly unharmed.