Yesterday, shortly after 7:30 a.m., Troopers from State Police Troop L began investigating a fatal crash involving a pedestrian on I-12 near Pumpkin Center Road in Tangipahoa Parish.
The crash claimed the life of 34 YO Javier Morel of Denham Springs.
The initial investigation led Troopers to determine that there were two separate crashes that occurred in the same general location along I-12 eastbound.
The first crash occurred as a 2004 Ford Escape, driven by Morel, was eastbound on Interstate 12 and traveled off the roadway and struck multiple trees. There were two juvenile passengers in the Ford. Both juveniles and Morel were ejected from the vehicle. The juveniles sustained non-life-threatening injuries as a result of the crash and were transported to a local hospital for further care and assessment.
After the initial crash and before emergency personnel arrived on scene, Morel walked away from the original crash and into the right lane of I-12 eastbound. At the same time, a 2019 Kenworth T880 was eastbound in the right lane of I-12. The Kenworth struck Morel.
Morel sustained fatal injuries as a result of the second crash. He was pronounced deceased on the scene.
The driver of the Kenworth was properly restrained and was not injured. As part of the ongoing investigation, routine toxicology samples were obtained from both Morel and the driver of the Kenworth for analysis.
This crash remains under investigation.
