A wrong-way crash on Interstate 10 west of Phoenix left one person dead and four others in the hospital on Saturday evening, according to authorities. The collision in the Tonopah area choked traffic along the rural stretch of I-10 near 339th Avenue, and two of the injured were reported in serious condition.
FOX 10 Phoenix reports that the Arizona Department of Public Safety said a wrong-way driver was heading east in the westbound lanes of I-10 just before 7 p.m. and died after crashing into another vehicle. All four people in the second vehicle were taken to a nearby hospital, with two of them suffering serious injuries. Westbound I-10 remained closed at Palo Verde on Saturday night while troopers processed the scene and investigators worked to learn why the driver was traveling into oncoming traffic.
Crash Site And Safety Work On I-10 Near Tonopah
The stretch of I-10 around 339th Avenue has seen more than its share of serious wrecks in recent years, including a late April wrong-way crash that sent three people to the hospital, according to Arizona’s Family. State transportation records list several contracts and projects in the Tonopah corridor, a sign that agencies are putting money into pavement work and detection upgrades on the heavily traveled interstate west of the Valley, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation. Engineers in recent years have tested wrong-way detection and warning systems across Arizona in an effort to cut down on high-speed head-on crashes.
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