Two people were killed and three others injured in a multi-vehicle wreck that crippled traffic throughout much of Savannah Friday afternoon.
Savannah-Chatham police shut down Interstate 516 between Veteran’s Parkway and Montgomery Street after the driver of a pickup truck traveling eastbound lost control, swerved over the median, and struck two vehicles, said Julian Miller, police spokesman.
The police department’s Major Accident Investigation Team determined the 22-year-old driver of the Ford F-250 was driving at a high rate of speed before he lost control of the vehicle that rolled over into a car before crashing into a westbound SUV carrying a family from Brooklet, Miller said.
Stephen Carroll Joyner, 29, the Toyota RAV4’s driver, and his wife, Camie Barnes Joyner, 31, died at the scene of the about 2:15 p.m. crash. Their 3-year-old daughter was taken to Memorial University Medical Center, where she was listed Friday night in serious but stable condition.
The driver of the F-250 was also listed in serious but stable condition, Miller said. The 47-year-old driver of a motorcycle who crashed trying to avoid the initial wreck was treated for his injuries at Memorial and released.
The wreck shut down I-516 for nearly three hours, forcing motorists to seek alternate routes and creating congestion throughout the city’s surface roads even after the highway was reopened just after 5 p.m.
Late Friday night MAIT was continuing its investigation into the wreck, Miller said.
Roadwork scheduled for Abercorn on southside today
Georgia Department of Transportation contractors will close two eastbound lanes of Abercorn Street on Savannah’s southside for most of the day today.
The temporary lane closures to construct a median in the area will begin at 7 a.m. and continue through 7 p.m. and will stretch from Holland Drive to Wilshire Boulevard.
Motorists’ access to businesses, schools and residences in the area should not be hindered. Drivers are asked to drive carefully in the work zone and to use alternate routes if possible.
Compiled by Corey Dickstein
