A 35-year-old woman died Friday morning after her Honda Pilot slammed into the back of a tractor-trailer climbing an uphill stretch of Interstate 26 East in Unicoi County. The crash shut down both eastbound lanes near mile marker 45, snarling traffic as crews worked the scene.
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, as reported by WJHL, the Honda Pilot was heading east in the right lane near mile marker 45 around 7:40 a.m. when it struck the rear of a Kenworth tractor-trailer. The highway patrol said the truck was moving slowly because of the uphill grade of the road at that point on the interstate.
Investigators say the Honda did not slow down or move into the left lane before hitting the back of the Kenworth, per the same account. The tractor-trailer reportedly kept moving a short distance after the impact before coming to rest on the right shoulder.
Driver Identified as Katie Rhiannon Willis
The highway patrol identified the woman who died as Katie Rhiannon Willis, 35, of Tennessee, according to WCYB. She was driving the Honda Pilot at the time of the crash. Both eastbound lanes of I-26 were shut down following the collision as authorities investigated and cleared the scene.
Not the First Serious Crash on This Stretch
Unicoi County's stretch of I-26 has seen other serious incidents in recent years. In 2023, a tractor-trailer ran off the interstate and struck a house, a crash that eventually claimed two lives, according to WLOS. Just earlier in October 2025, a separate crash on I-26 in Unicoi closed a lane but caused no injuries, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said at the time.
Fatal crashes involving commercial trucks have also turned up elsewhere in the region this fall. On Tuesday, a commercial truck struck a Subaru along US321 in East Tennessee, killing one person, according to WVLT. A similar pattern played out on I-26 eastbound in South Carolina, where a Kia Sorento struck a stopped tow truck, killing one person, as reported by Count on 2.
No further details on the investigation into Friday's crash have been released. The Tennessee Highway Patrol has not indicated whether additional findings will follow as the case is reviewed.
