Semi driver blamed in crash that tied up I-275 north of Tampa

TAMPA — A Tampa man driving a semitrailer made an illegal U-turn in the highway median, causing a collision that tied up traffic for hours Monday morning on Interstate 275 north of Tampa, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

The driver of the rig, 48, was headed north about 4:50 a.m. approaching State Road 56 when he started turning left so he could enter the southbound lanes of I-275, the Highway Patrol said in a news release Tuesday. A white van driven by a 55-year-old Safety Harbor man was traveling behind him and collided with the left side of the trailer.

The van driver received serious injuries. The truck driver was not injured and was cited for making an improper turn, the Highway Patrol said.

The Highway Patrol did not release the name of either driver under its interpretation of Marsy’s Law, a constitutional amendment that’s meant to protect crime victims but deprives the public of information that had long been made available under Florida’s public records law.