Man drives on wrong side of I-84 in Idaho, hits semi in fatal, fiery crash
A Texas man was killed in a vehicle crash after he drove down the wrong side of Interstate 84 in the early hours of Monday morning in Elmore County.
A 35-year-old man was driving his Dodge Ram truck east in the westbound lanes on I-84 southeast of Mountain Home, Idaho State Police said in a news release. He collided head-on with a semitrailer at 1:20 a.m. at mile marker 102.
“Upon impact, both vehicles were engulfed in flames,” police said.
The Ram driver died from his injuries at the scene, while the 34-year-old California man driving the semi was transported to a hospital by air ambulance, according to the release.
The westbound lanes were blocked for more than six hours after the accident. The left lane remained closed as of 10 a.m. Monday.
Idaho State Police said the agency is still investigating the incident.
Crash shares similarities with another fatal wreck
The crash was the second of its kind to happen in that area of the state this month, with eerie similarities.
On Nov. 8, a Texas man who also was driving a Dodge Ram went over the median on I-84, began driving into oncoming traffic and hit a truck driven by a Garden City man at mile marker 110 in Elmore County, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting.
Both vehicles were “engulfed in flames” in that incident as well, police said. The Garden City man died at the scene, and the Texas man was hospitalized.
