A New York City man has been charged with four counts of vehicular homicide following a fatal crash Sunday evening on a Tennessee interstate highway, which claimed the lives of at least two Alabamians.
Kingsport (Tenn.) police Public Information Officer Thomas Patton said the incident happened about 7 p.m. Sunday on Interstate 81 South, just north of the Airport Parkway exit.
A red Peterbilt tractor-trailer, driven by Saul A. Carrera, 60, of New York, was headed south on I-81 when it veered to the right onto the highway shoulder.
There, it struck a white 2017 Chevrolet Express van, which had been occupied by eight men and was parked on the shoulder after the left front tire became flat. Three of the men were still in the van, while five were working to repair the flat tire.
Carrera’s vehicle, according to Patton, struck the van and all five men, killing four of them. The three men inside the van, all from Gadsden, were not injured.
The tractor-trailer then continued south a short distance, jack-knifed, and overturned off the right side of the roadway.
Killed were Jose Urbano Serrano Ramos, 25, of Crossville; a 17-year-old Crossville man; Jesse James Delacruz, 49, of Fayetteville, Tenn., and a man who has not been identified. A 17-year-old from Gadsden also sustained major injuries and remains in critical condition at an area hospital, Patton said.
Carrera received non-incapacitating injuries and was transported to an area hospital.
Investigators have charged Carrera with four counts of vehicle homicide by intoxication, reckless aggravated assault, felony reckless endangerment, driving a commercial vehicle under the influence and failure to exercise due care.
Carrera remains hospitalized in stable condition under police guard. Once discharged, Patton said he will be transported to jail with a bond of $200,000.
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