In a span of just a few hours, Louisiana roadways were beset with two fatal crashes in separate parishes, leading authorities to issue a stark reminder of the importance of road safety. According to a report from the Louisiana State Police, the first accident occurred on U.S. 61 south of LA 964 in Jackson, resulting in the death of Sentoria Roundtree, a 35-year-old St. Francisville resident.
Roundtree was a passenger in a 2020 Toyota RAV4 that went off the road, hit a ditch, and crashed into a culvert. She wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and died at the scene. The driver was seriously hurt and taken to the hospital. Investigators are still looking into what caused the crash and have taken routine toxicology samples. Shortly after, another fatal crash happened on I-10 near Prairieville, where 23-year-old Jesse Diaz of Denham Springs died in a two-vehicle accident in Ascension Parish, as reported by the Louisiana State Police.
The Louisiana State Police detailed that Diaz was driving a 2013 Hyundai Elantra and for reasons still under investigation, stopped in the left lane of the interstate and exited his vehicle – it was then that a 2018 Chevrolet Equinox collided with the stopped Hyundai and struck Diaz, resulting in his immediate fatality. The individuals in the Equinox sustained moderate injuries and required hospitalization.
