The incident that unfolded on Interstate 71 early last Friday, which led to a fatal collision, has left the Columbus community reeling. A Chrysler Town & Country minivan driven by Joe Howard, a 58-year-old from Columbus' Northeast Side, was identified as the vehicle traveling in the wrong direction, plunging the interstate into chaos, according to a Columbus police crash report obtained by The Dispatch. Howard's minivan collided with an oncoming Ford F-150 and a tractor-trailer, which subsequently led to a second tractor-trailer crashing into a Dodge Ram 1500 that was attempting to avoid the initial wreckage.
The sequence of collisions resulted in the death of Sean Price, the 53-year-old driver of the Ram 1500. Price was ejected from his vehicle, which later burst into flames, and was pronounced dead after being transported to Grant Medical Center, as reported by both ABC 6 and 10TV. In the aftermath of the collision, the wrong-way driver fled on foot, triggering a six-hour search before being found and taken to the same medical facility to be treated for hypothermia, police records say.
The Columbus Division of Police continues to investigate the crash through its Accident Investigation Unit. They have called on the public for any information that could shed light on the tragic events of that early morning. Footage from the Ohio Department of Transportation, requested through public records, shows the Chrysler minivan going the wrong way before the crash, but the exact point of entry into the opposing lane remains unclear, a concern expressed by ODOT Press Secretary Matt Bruning, according to ABC 6. "We have video of them at Cleveland Avenue in 670 going the wrong direction," Bruning stated. "How they got the wrong direction at that location, we don't know."
