A multi-vehicle crash shut down every southbound lane of Interstate 275 in Pinellas County early today, killing at least one person near the 54th Street North interchange in St. Petersburg. Florida Highway Patrol confirmed the fatality as crews worked to clear the scene, though the exact cause of the collision has not yet been released.
The closure, first reported by Tampa Bay 28, brought all southbound traffic to a halt in one of the region’s busiest corridors. The outlet reported that Florida Highway Patrol was on scene investigating the multi-vehicle wreck, which the Florida Department of Transportation says occurred at 54th Street North.
A Corridor Already Under Construction Strain
The crash site sits inside an active work zone. FDOT closed the southbound I-275 Exit 26 ramp to 54th Avenue North and the westbound entrance ramp back in April as part of a $340 million highway widening project that stretches from north of 38th Avenue North to north of 4th Street North and is expected to run through late 2026, as Hoodline reported when the ramp shutdowns began. That means southbound drivers through the 54th Avenue North interchange have already been navigating reconfigured lanes and detour signage for months before Thursday’s fatal crash.
Whether the construction zone or detour patterns played any role in the collision is not yet known. Because the crash happened so recently, investigators have not released details on what led up to the wreck, and Florida law adds another layer of delay: under Florida Statute Section 316.066, motor vehicle crash reports containing personal identifying information stay confidential for 60 days after an incident, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. That means the identities of the deceased and any injured parties, along with the official investigative findings, likely won’t surface for weeks.
A Rough Stretch for Southbound I-275
This is not the first major disruption on southbound I-275 in Pinellas County this week. Just two days earlier, on September 1, a tractor-trailer hauling Tesla vehicle batteries lost control after a tire failure and slammed into a guardrail near 22nd Avenue North, according to Florida Highway Patrol reporting cited by St. Pete Patch. That crash struck a guardrail and a light pole but caused no injuries…