Fuel-loaded tanker truck crash kills Auburn woman, shuts down interstate

A 20-year-old Auburn, Ala., woman died Wednesday when a tractor-trailer truck rammed her Kia from behind while she was stuck in traffic backed up by an accident on Interstate 85.

The tanker truck was hauling jet fuel when it slammed Cassidy Meadows’ car into a bridge support at Exit 51, but the fuel did not leak, said Lee County Coroner Bill Harris, who pronounced Meadows dead from blunt injuries at 12:54 p.m. CDT.

The tanker also hit two more vehicles, sending at least four others to the East Alabama Medical Center for treatment. The truck driver was not injured, Harris said.

Auburn rescue workers needed nearly three hours to remove Meadows’ body from the wrecked Kia, and the interstate’s northbound lanes were closed for hours to remove the fuel from the tanker and clear the debris, the coroner said.