Man dies after his pickup truck hits broken-down tractor-trailer on I-85

One person was killed Wednesday afternoon in a fiery crash on I-85 in Fairburn, police said.

Credit: Channel 2 Action News

Credit: Channel 2 Action News

One person was killed Wednesday afternoon in a fiery crash on I-85 in Fairburn, police said.

A 40-year-old man was killed Wednesday in a fiery crash involving a tractor-trailer on I-85 in Fairburn, police said.

About 11:30 a.m., the tractor-trailer was broken down in the far right lane with warning signals in place behind it, interim Fairburn police chief Anthony Bazydlo said. A man driving a pickup truck didn’t see the tractor-trailer stopped and crashed into the back of it “at high speed,” Bazydlo said.

The man died at the scene. His identity has not been released pending notification of next of kin.

“Please keep the family and friends of the deceased in your hearts,” police said.

The driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured.

Bazydlo said Fairburn police is working with the Motor Carrier Compliance Division and the Georgia State Patrol on the investigation.

At one point, all northbound lanes were closed. They reopened just before 2:40 p.m.

Bazydlo said Fairburn police were investigating another tractor-trailer crash on I-85 northbound, but it was not related to the fatal wreck. In that crash, a rental truck driver crashed into a tractor-trailer that was stopped in the emergency lane due to a tire blowout.

The rental truck driver told police he dozed off, hit the back of the tractor-trailer and went into a ditch. He was taken to a hospital and treated for cuts to his head, Bazydlo said. The driver of that tractor-trailer was not injured.

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