A 45-year-old Texas man was killed in a fiery, head-on, three vehicle crash — involving two tractor-trailers — late Thursday in Kiowa County.
The wreck happened just before midnight on U.S. 287, just north of Eads on the Eastern Plains.
Trooper Josh Lewis, a spokesman for the Colorado State Patrol, says the man killed in the wreck was in the third vehicle involved — a 2015 Dodge Ram pickup. His name has not been released pending his family’s notification of his death.
Two others — 32-year-old Bahta Wibshet of Dallas and 40-year-old Terekegn Abera of Las Vegas — were taken to a hospital with injuries. Wibshet was seriously hurt, the State Patrol said.
The crash happened as the Dodge was traveling southbound on the highway and passed a 2005 Peterbilt tractor-trailer.
“After completing the pass, the Dodge re-entered the northbound lane in front of the 2007 Freightliner, which was traveling northbound pulling a 2007 Wanco box trailer,” the State Patrol said. “The Freightliner (driven by Wibshet and carrying Abera) collided with the Dodge and subsequently became engulfed in flames while traveling onto the east shoulder.”
The Perterbilt also collided with the Dodge, forcing the pickup to roll.
The Dodge’s driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Hwy 287 closed north of Eads. Fatal Crash. Long delays.
— CSP La Junta&Lamar (@CSP_LaJunta)
U.S. 287 was closed for nearly nine hours as officials investigated and cleaned up the scene.
The crash remains under investigation.
Lewis initially said the driver killed in the wreck was driving one of the tractor-trailers.
