Deadly crash on I-95 in St. Johns County halted traffic for nearly 4 hours

One person is dead and another is in critical condition after an early morning crash on I-95 North, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Passenger Jose E. Vazquez-Trujillo, 25, died in the crash and the driver, Dhayre M. Olivo Oquendo, 25, has serious injuries and is in the hospital, according to FHP's crash report. They were in the Toyota involved in the crash.

The report said neither Vazquez-Trujillo nor Oquendo were wearing their seatbelt.

The crash halted traffic for nearly four hours before FHP was able to reopen all lanes of traffic.

“I saw three tow trucks. The third one was really bad, terrible,” said Logan Cook.

Cook was on his way to work when he saw the accident on I-95. He works at a family-owned fruit stand called the Nut House along U.S. 1 on Exit 298.

FHP tells us the silver Toyota was driving northbound on I-95 when it lost control and struck a guardrail Thursday morning.

FHP said two other vehicles, a Chevrolet Pacifica and a Nissan Altima, collided with the Toyota. Only minor to no injuries were reported from passengers in these vehicles, according to the FHP report.

ORIGINAL: One dead, one critical after I-95 multi-car crash in St. Johns County, troopers say

Karen Mullis was fueling up at a gas station on U.S. 1 and tells us she was stuck behind the backup on I-95 when her gas tank was on empty.

“I did have zero miles on my gas tank, but I made it here safely,” said Mullis.

Mullis later found out the accident that caused the standstill was fatal.

“I was angry when I was stopped in the traffic. I was angry and then upset, and then I Googled and found out it was fatal and I realized how thankful I am and how lucky I’m to be alive and to not be involved in that accident,” she said.

Now, she’s praying for those involved.

Cook told us accidents like these are common near his family’s business. “Right out front, people pull out the parking lot the wrong way and drive down the wrong side of the road. I mean, I-95, you already know it's pretty much a racetrack,” he said.

Cook said he’s noticed a lot of the accidents are mainly due to speed and distracted drivers.

“Just slow down. You know, people are dying, it seems like, every day on I-95. Everywhere, you hear it every day,” said Cook.

Cox Media Group