An early Monday morning crash left a driver in critical condition, Gwinnett County police said.

About 3 a.m., a Mercedes was involved in a crash with a tractor-trailer, causing the Mercedes’ driver to be ejected along I-85 North, police said in a news release. The incident shut down the interstate near Jimmy Carter Boulevard for about two hours.

One driver was critically injured in the Gwinnett County incident, according to police.

Credit: JOHN SPINK / JSPINK@AJC.COM

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Credit: JOHN SPINK / JSPINK@AJC.COM

Investigators believe the Mercedes was driven into the tractor-trailer, which was parked on the interstate’s shoulder due to a flat tire, the release said. After colliding with the stationary vehicle, the Mercedes was thrown back into the travel lanes, where it was struck by a semi-truck, police said.

The driver of the Mercedes, who was taken to a hospital with critical injuries, has not been identified.

While the interstate was closed for investigators, another crash took place near Pleasantdale Road, blocking three lanes, police said.

A third crash in the area had all southbound lanes of I-85 shut down at Chamblee Tucker Road in DeKalb County around the same time, the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center reported. The details of the incident are not clear. Authorities reopened the interstate about 6:45 a.m., according to the Traffic Center.

The Perimeter in DeKalb was also heavily affected by a crash later in the morning, according to DeKalb police.

All I-285 lanes at I-85 were blocked for about an hour after a multivehicle crash took place about 10 a.m., police said. Injuries were reported, but no further information has been released.

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