FLORIDA — A wrong-way driver is facing charges after a crash on Interstate 75 in Charlotte County, Florida, left a woman dead and three others seriously injured early Sunday morning, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The crash happened around 1:13 a.m. near mile marker 150 on northbound I-75.
Troopers said a 53-year-old Sarasota man driving a 2020 Ford F-150 was traveling southbound in the northbound lanes when he collided with two vehicles traveling in the correct direction.
A 21-year-old woman from Bradenton, who was driving a 2012 Honda CR-V, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities said a 34-year-old Arcadia woman and two passengers in her 2016 Kia Optima, ages 12 and 15, suffered serious injuries and were transported to an area hospital.
A fourth vehicle, a 2023 Tesla Model 3 driven by a 19-year-old Sarasota woman, struck crash debris and sustained minor damage. The driver was not injured.
The wrong-way driver, identified by troopers as Dennis Lee Olson, suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital. After being released, Olson was arrested and charged with vehicular homicide and DUI manslaughter.
Olson was booked into the Charlotte County Jail. The Florida Highway Patrol continues to investigate the crash.
