2 dead in 6-vehicle crash on Florida Turnpike in Lake County, FHP says

MARION COUNTY, Fla. – A double fatal crash Friday morning prompted the hourslong closure of the Florida Turnpike in Lake County, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

The six-vehicle wreck happened in the southbound lanes of the Turnpike at mile marker 286 around 7:15 a.m. The FHP said the crash involved two tractor-trailers and four other vehicles, with two victims dead at the scene.

According to Florida Highway Patrol, a 2020 Toyota Corolla was heading south along the Florida Turnpike near Mile Marker 286.

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Meanwhile, five other vehicles were stopped for traffic ahead of the Corolla, and when the Corolla’s driver failed to stop, it crashed into the rear of one of the vehicles, a 2022 Chevrolet Equinox, a crash report shows.

The collision caused the Corolla to then rotate and strike the rear of another vehicle before becoming engulfed in flames, troopers said.

The Equinox, however, left the travel lane due to the collision and entered into the inside shoulder before striking the rear of yet another vehicle and crashing into the center guardrail, the report says.

Due to that collision, troopers said the Equinox then rotated, striking the front of a pickup truck.

According to the crash report, the Equinox continued traveling southbound between the guardrail and the trailer of a semitruck before getting wedged beneath the trailer.

The drivers of the Corolla and one of the other vehicles struck were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, troopers said.

The 69-year-old driver and 68-year-old passenger of the Equinox were pronounced dead at the scene, troopers said. FHP stated that the other drivers and passengers involved were uninjured and remained at the scene.

Southbound lanes were closed in the area roadway reopened just before 3 p.m.