Two men killed after wrong-way driver triggers head-on crash on I-95 in Howard County
HOWARD COUNTY, Md. - Two Maryland drivers were killed early Saturday morning when a wrong-way driver crashed head-on into another vehicle on Interstate 95 in Howard County, state police said.
Investigators believe alcohol and speed played a role in the deadly wreck, which brought traffic to a complete standstill for hours.
What Happened:
Troopers from the Waterloo Barrack were dispatched shortly before 4:30 a.m. to northbound I-95 near the 44-mile marker in Elkridge for a reported two-vehicle collision.
According to a preliminary investigation, 37-year-old Taleb Ait Zakariae of Rosedale was driving a 2025 Jeep Gladiator southbound in the far-left lane of northbound I-95. At the same time, 47-year-old Timothy Summerville Jr. of Baltimore was driving a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee heading northbound in that same lane when the two vehicles collided.
Emergency medical crews pronounced both Zakariae and Summerville dead at the scene.
What they're saying:
State police said investigators believe both alcohol and excessive speed may have contributed to the collision.
Crash reconstruction specialists and troopers remained at the scene throughout the morning, assisted by the Howard County Police Department and Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration crews who managed detours.
The crash forced emergency officials to shut down all northbound lanes of I-95 at mile marker 44, as well as the left lane of southbound I-95, causing major morning backups while crews cleared the wreckage and documented evidence.
The Maryland State Police Crash Team is leading the ongoing investigation.
The Source: This article was written using preliminary information provided by the Maryland State Police.