State police: 74-year-old wrong-way driver killed in crash on U.S. 270 in Hot Springs

Hot Springs police Detective Phillip DeFoor, left, and Crime scene Investigator Jennifer Barrera work the scene of a three-vehicle fatal collision that occurred shortly before 6:30 a.m. Thursday in the eastbound lane of the King Expressway near Higdon Ferry Road. - Photo by Richard Rasmussen of The Sentinel-Record
Hot Springs police Detective Phillip DeFoor, left, and Crime scene Investigator Jennifer Barrera work the scene of a three-vehicle fatal collision that occurred shortly before 6:30 a.m. Thursday in the eastbound lane of the King Expressway near Higdon Ferry Road. - Photo by Richard Rasmussen of The Sentinel-Record

A 74-year-old man died Thursday in Hot Springs after he drove the wrong way on U.S. 270 and collided with two other vehicles, police said.

Jimmie Sargent, of Hot Springs, was driving a Ford Ranger west in an eastbound lane of U.S. 270 around 6:20 a.m., according to a preliminary Arkansas State Police report.

A 21-year-old was driving a GMC Sierra east in the same lane, state police said, and was unable to avoid hitting the Ranger head-on.

A Chevrolet Suburban driven by a 33-year-old was traveling east behind the Sierra and hit the Ranger's front end as well, according to the report.

The drivers of the Sierra and the Suburban were both listed as being hurt, though the extent of their injuries wasn't listed.

State police said the highway was dry at the time of the crash, but it was cloudy and dark outside. The report didn't detail how the Ranger ended up traveling in the wrong direction.

At least 366 drivers have been killed in crashes on Arkansas roads so far this year, according to preliminary numbers.

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