UPDATE:
The Scott County Coroner's Office has identified the semi-truck driver who was killed in the wreck on I-75 southbound Tuesday.
According to officials, 55-year-old Lee Allan Hafer of Ohio was pronounced dead at the scene.
ORIGINAL:
The Scott County Sheriff's Office says that around 2:03 a.m. Tuesday, I-75 southbound near mile marker 121 was shut down due to a deadly semi crash along with a collision involving a deputy and emergency management worker.
According to officials, a preliminary investigation showed that a northbound semi lost two trailer tires that crossed the median into the soundbound lanes; one tire struck the semi's hood and went through the windshield.
Officials say the other tire struck the SUV traveling southbound, causing it to go off the roadway and into a field. The SUV's occupants were transported to Georgetown Community Hospital with minor injuries.
According to officials, the driver of the semi was pronounced dead at the scene.
The collision remains under investigation, and the name of the person killed has not been released.
Officials tell LEX 18 that several other crashes occurred after traffic stopped, including one involving a sheriff's deputy and an emergency management worker. The deputy says he was closing the road when he noticed a Tesla that wasn't slowing down and warned the worker.
According to officials, the deputy and emergency management worker narrowly got out of the way before the car crashed into the cruiser and smashed into the EMA trailer. The deputy was taken to the hospital with minor injuries, and the driver of the vehicle that crashed suffered serious injuries.
"We owe this guy a dinner because he was flashing his flashlight at the driver, blowing the whistle, doing everything possible to try and get that other driver's attention," said emergency management director Michael Hennigan.
Hennigan said that the driver of the Tesla never applied their brakes or swerved before crashing into the emergency vehicles. The sheriff's office will investigate that crash, he said.
"That's the frustrating thing, we feel like we did it exactly right, put message boards out before the 129 exit, crash ahead, be prepared to stop, everybody get off the road," Hennigan said. "And he passed all those signs and came through the cones, barricades then smashed the two emergency vehicles."
The driver of the Tesla was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.
The roadway was closed for several hours for investigation, but officials report they are now open.
