Two injured, one arrested after chain-reaction accident on I-75 Tuesday

Two people were taken to the hospital and one person was taken to jail following a chain reaction of wrecks on Interstate 75 Tuesday afternoon.

According to Corbin Police Officer John Hill about 2:45 p.m., Clay Smith, 35, of Corbin, lost control of his Toyota Tacoma pickup truck, ran off the road and flipped onto its side on northbound I-75 near the Laurel/Whitley County line.

"According to statements, he had been driving recklessly and just lost control while he was changing lanes," Hill said.
He failed several field sobriety tests and later admitted he was on prescription medications," he said.

As traffic slowed down near the wreck, a Lincoln Navigator slid off the left shoulder of the road and turned around before coming to rest with the right side up against a rock wall.

"We aren’t sure if the driver was trying to avoid the truck or slowed down as she came up on the scene," Hill said.

Hill added that several witnesses said a tractor-trailer truck may have rear-ended the Lincoln, but that remains under investigation.

Corbin Firefighters used the Jaws of Life to cut the top off of the Navigator so paramedics could extricate the driver and a passenger.

The two women, whose names were not available as of press time, were transported to Baptist Regional Medical Center. Both were conscious as the top was removed and they loaded into a waiting ambulance.

Hill said Smith was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol/drugs and reckless driving and lodged in the Whitley County Detention Center.

No report on the condition of the two women was available.

Northbound I-75 was closed to traffic for about 45 minutes as emergency personnel worked to clear the scene.

Corbin Police, Corbin Fire Department, Ambulance Inc of Laurel County, Whitley County EMS and a Laurel County Sheriff’s deputy responded to the scene.

"Laurel and Whitley County were both paged because it wasn’t clear whether the wreck was in Laurel or Whitley County," Hill said.