Chardon woman killed in 3-vehicle Ohio Turnpike crash

SANDUSKY, Ohio (WJW) — The Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating after a Chardon woman was killed in a three-vehicle crash on the Ohio Turnpike in Sandusky County.

The crash occurred on the Ohio Turnpike, east of the Route 51 interchange in Washington Township at 9:50 a.m. Monday.

According to investigators, a Kenworth T880 tractor-dump trailer, heading west, went off the side of the road, plowed through concrete barriers into the eastbound lanes and hit a Ford Escape.

The dump truck then crashed into a guardrail and a Kenworth T680 tractor-trailer, OSHP said.

Investigators say the Ford caught fire.

The Ford driver, 35-year-old Samantha Smith of Chardon, died at the scene.

The Kenworth T880 driver, a 58-year-old Toledo man, was flown to Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center for serious injuries.

The Kenworth T680 driver, a 43-year-old Illinois man, wasn’t injured in the crash.

The eastbound lanes of the Ohio Turnpike were closed for five hours Monday after the crash, which remains under investigation at this time.

According to information from the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission , all eastbound lanes on the Ohio Turnpike at milepost 83 in Sandusky County had been closed.

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