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1 killed, 2 injured in I-77 crash. Lanes closed near Cornelius before rush hour

A northbound car jumped Interstate 77’s median killing one, injuring two and closing down the highway near Huntersville, N.C., Friday, July 21, 2023,
A northbound car jumped Interstate 77’s median killing one, injuring two and closing down the highway near Huntersville, N.C., Friday, July 21, 2023, WSOC

A crash killed one person, injured two others and closed all southbound lanes on Interstate 77 in Cornelius Friday afternoon.

A northbound Jeep in the express lane jumped the median after losing control and rolling over in the southbound lanes near the Sam Furr Road Exit close to Huntersville, the N.C. Highway Patrol told WSOC, the Charlotte Observer’s news partner. Debris also damaged other vehicles.

This screenshot from a N.C. Department of Transportation camera shows multiple lanes of the interstate shut down near mile marker I-77 near Cornelius. A Jeep going north lost control in the express lanes before jumping the median into the southbound lanes.
This screenshot from a N.C. Department of Transportation camera shows multiple lanes of the interstate shut down near mile marker I-77 near Cornelius. A Jeep going north lost control in the express lanes before jumping the median into the southbound lanes. NCDOT

All four southbound lanes near mile marker 26 closed around 3 p.m. One non-express lane reopened at about 3:30 p.m., but the others were not expected to reopen until about 6 p.m., according to North Carolina’s Department of Transportation. Northbound express lanes were also closed at 4:30 p.m.

Paramedics initially took one patient with life-threatening injuries and two others with serious injuries to the hospital.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

This story was originally published July 21, 2023 at 4:47 PM.

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Julia Coin
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Julia Coin covers courts, legal issues, police and public safety around Charlotte and is part of the Pulitzer-finalist team that covered Tropical Storm Helene in North Carolina. As the Observer’s breaking news reporter, she unveiled how fentanyl infiltrated local schools. Michigan-born and Florida-raised, she studied journalism at the University of Florida, where she covered statewide legislation, sexual assault on campus and Hurricane Ian in her hometown of Sanibel Island. Support my work with a digital subscription
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