Two truck drivers were struck and killed after trying to help at a scene of a crash along southbound I-81 in Berkeley County, VA.
The names of the truck drivers who perished are Adam T. Miller, 53, of Hagerstown, and Anish P. Patel, 46, of Ontario, Canada. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
The fatal crash was preceded by multiple mass crashes on Tuesday morning which closed southbound I-81 for about seven hours.
Miller and Patel died as a result of two separate crashes at the onramp to southbound I-81.
The first crash happened when a southbound Infiniti car lost control, crossed the median, and struck a parked tractor-trailer. Soon after, a southbound SUV also lost control, crossed the median, and struck the Infiniti. The Infiniti got stuck under the trailer from the hit.
Multiple people stopped to help, including both truckers who got killed. The good samaritans were on foot when a Nissan SUV lost control, crossed the median, and struck them and the parked tractor-trailer.
The driver of the Nissan SUV, Jason Hopper, 47, of Martinsburg, was transported to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
According to an official release by local authorities, weather and speed “were significant factors in the incident.”
