Bay Bridge Crash: Wrong Way Driver Suspected Of DUI Arrested By CHP
A motorist allegedly high on drugs drove the wrong direction on San Francisco’s Bay Bridge on Saturday night, slamming into another car and causing a major wreck that injured three people.
According to SF Gate, 32-year-old Karrie Lyn Morgan of Vacaville accessed the bridge near the toll plaza and began driving westbound in the eastbound lanes with her lights off, just before 8:30 pm. Though other drivers swiftly contacted police to report a vehicle heading in the wrong direction on the bridge, Morgan’s car ultimately struck another motorist head-on, before sideswiping two other vehicles, east of Treasure Island.
All Eastbound lanes on the Bay Bridge are stopped. Major accident, tons of emergency vehicles. pic.twitter.com/mFX1bBE2Bj
— Skyler (@SkylerFoxy) November 9, 2014
All of the Bay Bridge’s eastbound lanes were closed for 15 minutes while paramedics rushed equipment to the scene. Three people, including Morgan, were transported to San Francisco General Hospital. Though authorities did not disclose the identities of the other motorists involved in the collision, one driver reportedly suffered major injuries in the crash.
PIC: Traffic backed up on the SF Bay Bridge after an injury accident involving a wrong way driver pic via @KatieABC7 pic.twitter.com/UjR2RKTdgA — Al Boe (@AlBoeNEWS) November 9, 2014
According to CBS San Francisco, after Morgan was medically cleared at the hospital, she was booked into San Francisco County Jail. She reportedly faces multiple charges, including driving under the influence of certain drugs, driving under the influence of drugs that cause injury to another and being an unlicensed driver, according to California Highway Patrol officials.
CHP spokesperson Officer Daniel Hill noted that Morgan’s reaction to the situation was highly irregular.
“Wrong way drivers are more common than people realize,” he said.
“But typically what happens is the driver realized their mistake, stops and corrects the error. It’s very rare that we see a situation where a driver continues driving.”
First PD/FD/EMS activity. Then traffic. Now: Bay Bridge EB = mess. Can report on this car accident from my room. pic.twitter.com/aVpKtXZTKp
— Kevin Aries (@kevinaries) November 9, 2014
All eastbound lanes on the bridge were reopened by 10:15 pm, after the right two lanes were opened earlier in a bid to alleviate the traffic backup. Drivers who found themselves stuck in the gridlock turned to social media to express their frustrations, noting the standstill.
“Usually takes 40 mins to get home over the Bay Bridge,” one driver, Ian Holmes, wrote on Twitter. “Took 2.5 hrs. this evening.”
Last year, a fire on the bridge caused similar traffic delays, while causing a major spectacle, as the Inquisitr reported.
Though the lower deck of the Bay Bridge turned into a virtual parking lot following the crash, police reported no incidents after traffic began moving.
[Image: Mark Tamayo via Twitter]
