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Man dies in fiery rear-end crash with big rig on Florida’s Turnpike in Orange County

Fatal wreck shut down Turnpike near I-4 for hours

ORLANDO, Fla. – A man was killed in a fiery two-vehicle wreck that closed Florida’s Turnpike in Orange County for hours, the Florida Highway Patrol reported.

The fatal crash happened late Sunday in the northbound lanes of the Turnpike near Interstate 4.

The FHP said the man was driving a 1998 Honda Civic north on the Turnpike when he failed to slow down for traffic ahead of him and crashed into the back of a tractor-trailer. The car caught fire and became engulfed in flames, according to an FHP crash report.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene, troopers said.

According to the FHP crash report, witnesses said the man was driving at a high rate of speed before the crash.

The driver of the big rig, a 51-year-old West Palm Beach man, was not injured.

Northbound lanes of the Turnpike were closed from I-4 to U.S. 441 before reopening around 6 a.m. Monday.

Check back for updates.