A Harrisburg woman was killed when her vehicle veered into oncoming traffic on Interstate 81 in Luzerne County Wednesday. An infant in the vehicle with her suffered serious injuries and was rushed to a local hospital.
According to information released by Pennsylvania State Police in Hazleton, the woman is identified as 19-year-old Amiyah Sherard. An infant passenger in the vehicle with her suffered serious injuries and was rushed to Geisinger-Wyoming Valley for treatment.
Harrisburg Woman Dies in I-81 Crash – Infant Passenger Survives, Seriously Injured
Police say, at just before 2 p.m., they were called to the scene of a collision on the highway near Mile Marker 142.5 in Hazle Township.
They determined that a Chevrolet Impala driven by Sherard veered from the northbound lane over to the southbound lanes. They’re not sure why Sherard’s vehicle crossed the highway as it did.
When Sherard’s vehicle entered the southbound lanes, it struck a 2020 International Harvester driven by John Ripley, of Marathon, NY. After it was hit, Sherard’s vehicle stopped facing west on the shoulder of the southbound side of the highway.
The impact of the collision caused the tractor trailer involved to go off the road, on the west side of I-81 South. The truck broke through a guide rail and went down an embankment. Ripley was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital in Hazleton for treatment of minor injuries, police say.
The Luzerne County Coroner pronounced Sherard dead at the scene of the crash. Police say she was not wearing her seat belt upon their arrival. The infant in the vehicle was properly restrained, they say. And Ripley, too, was wearing a seat belt.
State Police continue to investigate this incident.
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