Crossville, TN : Two seriously hurt in wrong-way I-40 crash on Monday evening, March 6, 2017

Two persons were seriously injured in a horrific wreck involving between three and five vehicles Monday evening when a driver entered I-40 in the wrong lane and traveled about a mile before crashing head-on into oncoming traffic.

Efforts to obtain information about the drivers involved were not successful as of press time Tuesday afternoon. It is not believed any of the drivers involved in the crash were from Cumberland County.

The wreck occurred between the Genesis Rd. and Hwy. 127 exits near the 320 milemarker around 5:30 p.m. when a man driving a large white pickup truck with North Carolina license plates entered I-40 at the Genesis Rd. exit.

The vehicle collided head-on with an SUV displaying Sumner County, TN, license plates. A third vehicle, also believed to be driven by a Tennessee motorist and pulling a large utility or animal trailer, ended up in the grassy median.

Trooper Bobby Barker said at the scene both drivers in the head-on crash were seriously injured. Two ambulance helicopters landed on I-40 and transported the two to regional trauma centers. Their condition is not known.

Driver of the vehicle that ended up in the median was not hurt. In addition, there were reports of two vehicles that continued traveling to the Genesis Rd. exit that were also damaged in the crash. It is not known if those vehicles were also involved in the wreck or were damaged by debris.

Cumberland County sheriff’s deputies assisted state troopers with traffic control and for a period of time traffic was rerouted into Crossville on N. Main St. and detoured to Industrial Dr. and Genesis Rd. and back onto I-40.

Warrants have been signed against the North Carolina man who was driving in the wrong lane. The warrants have not been served as the driver remains hospitalized, and the charges are not known.

When additional information becomes available it will be posted on the Chronicle website and in the next edition of the newspaper.

Source :
Two seriously hurt in wrong-way I-40 crash