A man driving the wrong way on Highway 180 in Fresno County died Thursday morning after his Nissan slammed head-on into an eastbound semi-truck west of Napa Avenue near Kerman. The crash happened just after 11 a.m., and the truck driver walked away without injury while the Nissan driver, believed to be between 30 and 40 years old, did not survive.
According to kmph.com, the wreck unfolded on a stretch of Highway 180 that carries steady traffic between Fresno and the small Central Valley community of Kerman. The station reported the collision as extremely violent, describing it as a high-speed crash. The man in the Nissan was the only person inside the vehicle, per a report from yourcentralvalley.com.
The California Highway Patrol said the Nissan was traveling west on the wrong side of Highway 180 before it crashed head-on into a semi-truck heading east, according to the Fresno Bee. The truck driver was not taken to a hospital, and the cause of the wrong-way driving has not been determined.
Identity Withheld as Investigation Continues
As of Thursday, the identity of the man who died had not been officially released, the same report from yourcentralvalley.com noted. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, per the same account from kmph.com.
Separately, ABC30 Fresno reported that CHP received multiple calls about the collision near Napa Avenue, west of Kerman, and that witnesses told officers they saw the Nissan speeding before the crash. ABC30 also reported that CHP said the man worked at a federal prison, though his name has still not been disclosed. Whether drugs or alcohol played any role in the crash is unknown, the outlet reported.
A Stretch of Highway With a History of Serious Wrecks
Thursday's fatal crash is not the first serious collision to strike this part of Highway 180 near Kerman. In November 2023, one person was killed in a multiple-vehicle collision east of Kerman on the same highway, according to the Fresno Bee. That crash happened around 6:30 p.m. at North Floyd Avenue and involved a work truck, a Honda sedan and other vehicles, forcing traffic on Highway 180 to be rerouted.
No further details on Thursday's crash, including the identity of the man who died or any findings on what caused him to be driving the wrong way, have been made public. Investigators have not said when more information might be released.
