KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Callers to the 911 center in Knoxville warned dispatchers of a wrong-way driver on Interstate 40. Moments later, the sedan they were calling about crashed head-on into a tractor-trailer rig.
The collision early today killed the driver of the sedan and shut down the eastbound lanes of the interstate in the downtown area for hours. The highway reopened shortly after 6 a.m.
Police spokesman Darrell DeBusk told the Knoxville News Sentinelthe car driver was thrown out in the collision. The person’s name wasn’t immediately released.
The truck driver — 46-year-old Bobby Rhinehart of Cullowhee, N.C. — received only minor injuries.
It wasn’t clear where the sedan got onto the interstate.