One driver was killed in a rollover wreck on Interstate 440 in North Little Rock on Friday afternoon, the highway's second fatal crash in Pulaski County in less than two days.
North Little Rock Deputy Fire Marshal Dustin Free said crews were called to the area of the Faulkner Lake Road exit about 1:50 p.m. One 18-wheeler traveling west crossed over into the eastbound lanes and struck another 18-wheeler, according to authorities at the scene.
According to an Arkansas State Police preliminary report, a westbound 2016 Western Star truck hauling two trailers hit the inside of a concrete barrier and then crossed into the eastbound lanes. The second trailer hit an eastbound 2018 International truck driven by 64-year-old Michel Joseph Legros of Ontario.
Legros suffered fatal injuries. Two people in the Western Star truck were said to be hurt, though the report didn't detail the extent of their injuries.
Agencies that responded included the North Little Rock Fire Department, the North Little Rock Police Department, Arkansas State Police, the Arkansas Department of Transportation, the Pulaski County coroner, the North Little Rock Emergency Management Office and the city's hazmat team, which cleaned up oil from the trucks' tanks, he said.
Authorities were on the scene for hours, with traffic at 4 p.m. backed up over the bridge into Little Rock "as far as you can see," Free said. The highway didn't fully reopen until early Saturday morning.
Two people were killed in a wreck on Interstate 440 in Little Rock on Thursday morning, according to Arkansas State Police.
Pulaski Co: (UPDATE) I-440 EB is still closed and WB has delays due to a rollover accident near Faulkner Lake Rd. (mm 8) in North Little Rock. Drivers are encouraged to use an alternate route. Monitor at https://t.co/l1xGNNTado. #artraffic pic.twitter.com/WR5oUJZVwg
— Arkansas DOT (@myARDOT) April 27, 2018
