Two lanes reopen on southbound I-275 after fatal wrong-way crash

TAMPA — Two lanes reopened and two remained closed along southbound Interstate 275 at Howard Avenue after a fatal crash just before 6 a.m., troopers said in a 1:35 p.m. news release.

A 32-year-old Brandon woman died in the collision, according to the Florida Highway Patrol said. She slammed head-on into a southbound pickup truck after she entered I-275 the wrong way, driving north up the southbound on-ramp at Dale Mabry Highway.

The driver and two passengers in the pickup were taken to hospitals with minor injuries. The driver, 39, is from Edgewood City, and the two passengers, 39 and 40, are from Orlando. All four of the people involved in the collision were wearing seatbelts.

The Highway Patrol did not release their names because of its interpretation of Marsy’s Law, a voter-approved amendment to the state Constitution that was designed to protect crime victims but that deprives the public of information that had nong been available under Florida’s public records law.

Upon impact, the pickup spun before coming to a stop across the southbound travel lanes of I-275, the Highway Patrol said. The truck was towing a closed container trailer that appeared to hold tar or asphalt.

The car spun toward the shoulder of the highway and crashed into the guardrail.

The wreckage had been cleared by 7:40 a.m. the state Department of Transportation reported in its website. But southbound traffic was rerouted onto Himes Avenue for about seven hours until two of the four lanes were reopened.

This is a developing story. Stay with tampabay.com for updates.