By Joanie Morris
Salisbury Post
CONCORD ó Traffic on Interstate 85 headed south was snarled for several hours Friday morning after a mid-morning accident near exit 55.
North Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper W.Y. Kessler confirmed one person died in the accident, which happened at about 9:15 a.m. Friday.
Debra Reddick, 51, of Winston-Salem, was driving a red 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt rental car north on I-85 when Kessler said she veered off the road.
“For no reason, she jerked the wheel and ran off the road into the median,” said Kessler. “She ran under the cable into the southbound lane.”
There, she struck a “very large” GMC pickup driven by Thomas Davis, 53, of Okolona, Miss. The driver’s side door took the full impact of the accident and Kessler said Reddick died immediately on impact. She was wearing her seatbelt and the airbag in the car deployed.
First on the scene was off-duty Charlotte Fire Department firefighter James Shaffner, who witnessed the accident and was the first to the car. There were no passengers in either car. Davis was not injured in the accident.
Kessler said the accident shut down all lanes of I-85 South for about 1ć hours, then one lane was reopened. Within two hours, she said both lanes of southbound I-85 were back open, but traffic was still heavy at lunchtime.
There was no diversion of traffic, however, many commuters got off the interstate and drove down U.S. 29.
Contact Joanie Morris at 704-932-3336 or jmorris@salisburypost.com.