A woman was killed and four other motorists were injured Thursday afternoon in a head-on crash of two SUVs on the downtown connector ramp from the Hart Bridge, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Troopers said a Nissan Rogue was headed south, from downtown toward the bridge, at 3:40 p.m. when it struck a northbound Chevrolet Equinox. Joan Kinsler, 74, a passenger in the Equinox, died at the scene and that SUV's driver and two other passengers -- all from the Tampa area -- were taken to UF Health Jacksonville.
The driver of the Rogue, Henok Mekonnen (pictured, left), of Jacksonville, was hospitalized at Memorial Medical Center with serious injuries.
Troopers said the Rogue also struck another vehicle, and debris from the impact damaged a fourth vehicle. No one in those vehicles was injured.
According to the FHP report, charges against 52-year-old Mekonnen are pending.
Wendell Russ said the impact of the crash was enough to shake the warehouse where he works nearby.
"We heard a big thump," Russ said. "We walked out (of the) the warehouse and saw a truck all up on the edge."
Traffic between bridge and downtown was at a standstill through early evening as dozens of emergency vehicles responded to the crash and the scene was investigated and cleared.
The crash occurred on August 2, which data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety shows on average is the one day of the year with the highest number of deadly crashes in the United States.
The collision happened hours after a man died and two girls were injured in a wrong-way crash on the Wonderwood Connector between Mayport and East Arlington.
According to the FHP, there were 89 calls about wrong-way drivers in Duval County between July 2017 and July 2018.