Crashes that happened 14 hours apart and were separated by about 80 miles killed four people and injured two others between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning, according to the Georgia State Patrol.
The incidents in Fayette and Bartow counties weren’t related, but they had one thing in common: Drivers tried to flee from law enforcement moments before the wrecks.
On Monday morning, a driver trying to avoid an earlier wreck in Bartow was among two killed, along with the driver officers pursued. On Sunday afternoon, two women were killed after Fayetteville officers attempted a traffic stop and the driver refused to yield, according to investigators.
Shortly before 6 a.m. Monday, Calhoun officers and Gordon County deputies attempted to stop a white Chevrolet Silverado on I-75. According to Calhoun police, officers had responded to reports of a person possibly in a stolen vehicle at a RaceTrac gas station.
When officers tried to stop the truck, the driver sped away and traveled east on Ga. 53 to the Calhoun bypass, then turned toward I-75. The suspect drove on the interstate at speeds exceeding 90 mph, according to police.
“As the Chevrolet Silverado approached mile marker 304, the fleeing driver moved to the right and made contact with the Calhoun Police Department patrol car,” a GSP spokesperson said in a statement. “After this impact, the driver of the Chevrolet Silverado lost control, left the roadway and struck the guardrail, where the pickup truck overturned and struck a Buick SUV traveling north on Interstate 75.”
The truck’s driver was ejected during the rollover and struck by the Buick, investigators said. The driver of the truck, whose name was not released, died at the scene. The driver of the Buick was flown to Grady Memorial Hospital with serious injuries.
A second crash then occurred.
“A Toyota Corolla and a Hyundai Genesis G70 were traveling north on Interstate 75, and both drivers took evasive action to avoid the initial crash,” the GSP said.
That led the Toyota to travel off the road and overturn before being hit by the Hyundai. The driver of the Hyundai died at the scene, while the driver of the Toyota suffered non-life-threatening injuries, investigators said.
The crashes snarled traffic for hours Monday morning on I-75 in both directions through Bartow.
On Sunday afternoon, another driver trying to evade officers crashed, killing herself and a passenger, according to Fayetteville police.
Around 3:45 p.m., officers attempted to stop a Honda Accord with a tag that belonged to another vehicle that was traveling eastbound on Ga. 54 near Callaway Road, police said.
Officers used a Precision Immobilization Technique, or PIT maneuver, to stop the pursuit before it reached the McDonough Road intersection and endangered other drivers. The vehicle left the road and crashed, police said.
“The officer performed a PIT maneuver on the vehicle and it rotated counter-clockwise, overturned and came to a rest on its tires,” the GSP said.
The driver and passenger were taken to a hospital, but both died from their injuries. Their names were not released pending notification of family members.
No other motorists were involved in the incident and no other injuries were reported.
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