Man drives wrong way in freeway fast-lane: 1 dead, 1 injured

A man drove seven kilometers in the opposite direction to traffic on National Highway One in Tainan City, yesterday, causing chaos, and crashes involving four vehicles, leaving one dead, and one injured.

According to the police investigation, the driver of an SUV, named Ho, entered the northbound lanes of the freeway at the 281 kilometer mark north of the Xinying Interchange at 4:16 pm, and proceeded to drive southbound in the fast lane.

Cars were forced to dodge the errant driver, with two cars colliding at the 283 kilometer mark, as one driver quickly veered right to avoid a head-on collision with Ho’s vehicle, sideswiping another car in the process. Fortunately, no injuries were reported from that accident.

However, after driving seven kilometers in as many minutes, Ho ran head-on into a Toyota sedan driven by a man named Liao at 4:23 pm. Ho’s SUV rolled over four times, leaving Ho trapped in the mangled wreck.

The Tainan City Fire Department dispatched five vehicles and 11 personnel to the scene of the accident. Paramedics found Liao slightly injured, and Ho was extracted from his vehicle at around 5:00 pm having lost vital signs.

Both drivers were rushed to Chi Mei Hospital, Liouying. Ho was declared dead shortly after arrival.

A blood test showed that Ho was not affected by alcohol. The cause of the incident, and reasons for Ho driving in the opposite direction, counter to traffic flow, is still under investigation.

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