WALTON, Ky. — Two fatal crashes shut down northbound I-75 in Boone County for hours Monday night, the sheriff's office said.
The highway has since reopened.
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said just after 7 p.m. all northbound lanes of I-71/75 were closed near the Richwood Road exit following a two-vehicle crash. Boone County dispatchers confirmed at least one person was killed.
The Boone County Sheriff's Office said four vehicles were involved in the crash, which happened in the northbound lanes at around 6:33 p.m. The driver of a Toyota Tacoma lost control because of icy conditions on the road, swerving into the left emergency lane where he collided with a Ford Focus driven by 70-year-old Phillip Latham of Loveland, Ohio.
The sheriff's office said after the Toyota Tacoma collided with Latham's vehicle, it continued across all lanes of traffic, hitting two other vehicles. The Tacoma and those two vehicles stopped in the right emergency lane of the highway. Latham's vehicle remained in the left emergency lane, facing the wrong direction after the crash.
The sheriff's office said Latham tried to cross the highway on foot to get to where the other three vehicles were stopped and was hit by another driver in the right lane. He was pronounced dead at the scene, deputies said.
Neither speed nor intoxication are believed to have played a part in the crash; the sheriff's office said deputies believe the icy road conditions were a contributing factor.
A few hours later, at around 8:41 p.m., dispatchers said northbound I-75 at the Mary Grubbs Highway exit was shut down due to a multi-vehicle crash. The sheriff's office later reported that crash was also fatal.
The Boone County Sheriff's Office said the second crash also involved four vehicles. Deputies said a Cadillac XT6 was traveling in the center lane when its driver began to slow as traffic in front of them slowed to a stop; the Cadillac was rear-ended by the driver of a Ford Ranger.
As a result, the Cadillac went into the left lane, sideswiping a Hyundai Elantra while the Ford Ranger entered the right lane, sideswiping a Toyota Highlander.
The collisions caused two passengers in the Cadillac to be ejected; one of those passengers, 70-year-old Linda Hendricks, of St. Augustine, Fla. was pronounced dead at the scene.
The second passenger was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
Two other passengers in the Cadillac were also taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries; the driver was not hurt.
The driver of the Toyota Highlander and their two passengers were not hurt; the driver of the Hyundai Elantra and its two passengers were also hospitalized with injuries that were not life threatening.
The driver of the Ford Ranger was not hurt.
The highway fully reopened to traffic at around 2:46 a.m. Tuesday morning. The sheriff's office said deputies do not believe road conditions, speed or intoxication contributed to the second crash.
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