WCSD Press Release | Dec 23, 2016 - Around 8:30 a.m. December 22, 2016, Sergeant Todd Shelley responded to a single vehicle wreck near southbound I-75 mile point 7. Deputy Cody Harrell was also en route when a second single vehicle wreck occurred at the same location.
The two vehicles did not collide but crashed within feet of each other at different times.
The first wreck occurred when a man from Perry County, Kentucky lost control of his 2016 Ford Explorer. The SUV rolled and landed on its top. The driver, an adult female and two teenage females were transported by Whitley County EMS to Jellico Community Hospital.
As of 5:30 p.m., the driver and two teenagers had been discharged from the hospital; the adult female passenger was transported by ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center.
The second wreck occurred when a woman from Michigan lost control of her vehicle near the site of the first wreck. Her vehicle also overturned and the only other occupant was a pet dog. She declined transport to the hospital.
Due to the wrecks, southbound traffic was brought to a halt, causing standstill conditions that extended North of Williamsburg. During that time, a tractor trailer hauling coffee from Ohio to Tennessee overturned between the initial wreck location and Williamsburg. Kentucky State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement investigated that incident.
Access to southbound I-75 from Williamsburg was blocked for a time to prevent further congestion. Approximately three hours after the first wreck, one lane of I-75 was open and access to I-75 was restored.
Around 6:10 p.m., one lane of I-75 was closed so the overturned commercial vehicle could be removed from the site.
