A Georgia man was injured after being ejected from a tractor-trailer during a single-vehicle crash Wednesday afternoon on Interstate 75 South in Gordon County.
According to preliminary findings released by the Georgia State Patrol, a trooper from Post 43 in Calhoun was dispatched to the crash shortly after 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 9. The wreck occurred on southbound I-75 just north of Exit 310.
Investigators said a 2019 Freightliner Cascadia commercial motor vehicle, pulling a 2015 Utility dry van, was traveling south in the center lane when it veered to the right and left the west side of the interstate.
The tractor-trailer continued southbound after leaving the roadway and struck a culvert with its right-side wheels and undercarriage before hitting a fence. The truck then entered a wooded area, striking several small trees before crashing into a larger tree.
The driver, identified by GSP as 58-year-old Arthur Lee McLendon of Washington, Georgia, was completely ejected from the truck during the crash.
McLendon was transported from the scene by Life Force Air Medical with injuries that have not been specified. His condition was not immediately available.
The crash caused significant traffic problems along I-75 South Wednesday afternoon and evening. All southbound lanes were closed for a period of time as emergency crews worked at the scene, Life Force landed to transport the injured driver, and crews began removing the wreckage. Traffic remained backed up for hours following the crash.
The investigation into what caused the tractor-trailer to leave the roadway remains ongoing.
Georgia State Patrol is investigating the crash with assistance from the Georgia Department of Public Safety’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement unit.