Man killed in I-40 crash near Jones Sausage Road in Garner
GARNER, N.C. (WTVD) -- A multi-vehicle collision left one man dead and temporarily closed all lanes of westbound Interstate 40 near Jones Sausage Road Tuesday.
The accident before noon left drivers stuck in traffic for approximately two hours.
The Highway Patrol said a white Pontiac Trans Am was traveling east on I-40 around 11:15 a.m. when an unknown burgundy Chevrolet or GMC Envoy changed lanes, causing the Trans Am to veer into the median. The Trans Am, which was driven by 62-year-old Paul Rosequist, of Garner, then struck the guardrail and crossed over into the westbound lanes of I-40, before colliding into a brown Chevrolet Impala.
After impact, the Impala, driven by 66-year-old Elizabeth Langdon, of Clayton, then swerved to the right, striking a white Kia Sorrento driven by 70-year-old Judith Barefoot, of Clayton.
Rosequist was taken to WakeMed where he later died.
Langdon and Barefoot were taken to the hospital as well. There's no word on their conditions.
The Highway Patrol is investigating the accident; DOT officials tell ABC11 they will begin an investigation when the NCHP wraps up its inquiry.
The DOT has come under fire for its widespread use of median cables along North Carolina roads. In many accidents, victims, witnesses, and loved ones blame the cables for making accidents worse.
The ABC11 I-Team has extensively covered the problem and shown how the cables are intended to work and revealed their weak spots.
"Cables will prevent some accidents. Some they won't," said Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. Jeff Gordon. "A lot of it has to do with the road nomenclature or the roadway itself. If you go look at that particular location there, the road does kind of go into a 'V.' You have the right type of vehicle, the right angle, it can either go over the guardrail or it can go under depending on the size of the vehicle."
Gordon says it appears that happened in this case - Rosequist's Trans Am going under the median cable and ending up in oncoming traffic.
The DOT won't speculate on the cause of the crash or the cable's role in it. Department spokesman Steve Abbott saying only this over email: "We don't comment on an accident that just happened as we don't know the specifics of the crash, and we wouldn't speculate about such a tragic incident. As we do in almost all fatal crashes in the state, once the law enforcement completes and files its report on the crash, we will conduct our own investigation into it, and also look at such things as crash history at a location to determine if any changes are needed to improve the safety at that location."
Meantime, Highway Patrol investigators are seeking the public's help in locating the driver of the burgundy Chevrolet or GMC Envoy similar to the picture provided below. The vehicle was last seen traveling east on I-40.
Anyone with information is asked to call (919) 733-3861 or (919)733-4400.
