Authorities have charged the driver of a tractor-trailer that slammed into multiple vehicles and overturned near the gas pumps of a Gwinnett County QuikTrip early Thursday morning.
Andrel Tremaine Meadows, 42, of Byron, faces multiple charges, including too fast for conditions, following too close and unsecure load, the Georgia State Patrol said Friday in a statement.
The truck was traveling west on Jimmy Carter Boulevard shortly after 7 a.m. when it struck at least two cars that were stopped at a red light at the Brook Hollow Parkway intersection, according to the agency.
“Mr. Meadows stated he applied the brakes to avoid a collision and his vehicle began to slide ultimately causing him to lose control and leave the roadway,” the GSP said in the statement.
RELATED: Crash sends tractor-trailer into gas station parking lot; 10 vehicles damaged
The collision sent the tractor-trailer and at least one other vehicle into the parking lot of the gas station, Gwinnett fire spokesman Donald Strother previously said.
Ten vehicles were damaged, and crews that responded to the scene had to free one person from the wreckage, according to authorities. That person was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Credit: JOHN SPINK / JSPINK@AJC.COM
Credit: JOHN SPINK / JSPINK@AJC.COM
At the time of the crash, the tractor-trailer was hauling nine rolls of paper weighing about 5,500 pounds each, Strother said.
The incident caused major delays in Norcross for drivers heading to work through the area, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.
Firetrucks and police cars stopped traffic as crews worked to clear the vehicles and remove the debris.
They got the big rig in an upright position about 11:15 a.m.
No one else has been charged in connection with the incident, the GSP said.
All of the charges against Meadows are misdemeanor traffic offenses, and he will have an opportunity to either pay them or dispute them in court, according to the GSP.
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