1 driver dead, six hurt as garbage truck hits 7 stopped vehicles on S.R. 52

SHADY HILLS — One driver died, one was seriously injured and five others received minor injuries when a garbage truck driver slammed into a line of vehicles stopped at a traffic signal on State Road 52 just west of the Suncoast Parkway, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

The pileup occurred about 3:50 p.m. Monday on S.R. 52 at an intersection where Canyon Boulevard to the north and Silver Palm Boulevard to the south meet. The scene is the entrance to the Lone Star Ranch subdivision where S.R. 52 is an eight-lane divided highway with left- and right-turn-only lanes.

Seven westbound vehicles were stopped at the traffic light when the garbage truck, driven by a 56-year-old New Port Richey man, failed to stop, the Highway Patrol said. The truck collided with a Toyota 4Runner and continued forward, striking the other six vehicles.

Four of the vehicles caught fire and burned. The driver of the 4Runner, believed to be a 24-year-old Wesley Chapel man, suffered fatal injuries.

The crash closed the highway until 10:30 p.m., the Highway Patrol said.