About 7:30 pm Wednesday, a major accident occurred between a Toyota Camry and a Nissan Maxima in the southbound HOV lane of I-45 just south of SH 242. A single male occupant in the Toyota suffered minor injuries as his vehicle rolled on its side. The four persons in the Nissan were uninjured. Needham Fire responded to the scene. In addition, an MCSO deputy who was working the crash parked on the northbound inside shoulder with his lights activated. He has just exited his vehicle and went over the k-wall to the southbound lanes when a woman, being the single occupant in the HOV lane, failed to move over or slow down as the law prescribes. The speedometer of her Ford Explorer was locked on 80mph as she struck the patrol car. The impact drove the Tahoe across all the northbound lanes of the freeway and slammed it against the outside concrete barrier with enough force to also crumple the front of the patrol unit. After she struck the Tahoe she began to spin and struck a Hyundai Kona, which was also in the HOV lane as a single occupant. The driver of the Kona was in stable condition, the driver of the Ford Explorer was trapped in the vehicle. Needham Fire were able to quickly extricate her. She was transported in critical condition to the hospital. The crash closed all northbound lanes of I-45 and three southbound lanes of I-45 for close to 2 hours as DPS investigated the crash and TXDOT worked at mitigating the spilled fluids on the roadway. The Deputy was not injured. Conroe Fire assisted Needham Fire.
