The driver of the Ford SUV was pronounced dead at the scene; two passengers were seriously injured.PALMETTO (FOX 13) -
One person was killed and two others injured Sunday in a one-vehicle crash on Interstate 75 in Manatee County.
The incident occurred at approximately 11:30 a.m. and snarled traffic in the southbound lanes near the Hillsborough/Manatee line for several hours.
The driver of the vehicle, 42-year-old Lizza E. Blunt of Wesley Chapel, was pronounced dead at the scene. Two passengers in her 2001 Ford Sports Utility Vehicle were airlifted by helicopter to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg.
Timothy Portalatin, 27, and Christine A. Penn, 24, are listed in serious condition.
According to a Florida Highway Patrol report Blunt was traveling south in the center lane when she observed a tire tread in the roadway. She veered to the left in an attempt to avoid the debris and over-corrected to the right and then back to the left.
The SUV overturned onto its right side in the center lane of I-75. The southbound lanes were closed and traffic was diverted onto County Road 683 while FHP investigators collected evidence.
Portalatin is a Wesley Chapel resident; Penn resides in Flushing, New York the report states.
The roadway was re-opened just after 4 p.m.
No charges have been filed.
