ORANGE COUNTY, Texas — A Mauriceville man was arrested for driving while intoxicated after being accused of driving the wrong direction on I-10 in Orange County Wednesday morning.
Carlise Coy Simmons, 75, was arrested and taken to a local hospital for medical evaluation after investigators said he drove the wrong way on I-10, causing a crash near Hwy. 62 according to a DPS news release.
Investigators said the driver drove up the exit ramp and drove eastbound in the westbound lanes. The driver sideswiped several vehicles and continued driving the wrong direction according to the release.
An 18-wheeler driver swerved to miss the driver and struck another vehicle according to the release.
Simmons' vehicle then came to rest after hitting the trailer portion of the wreck 18-wheeler according to the release.
No one was seriously injured, but the driver of the vehicle struck by the 18-wheeler went to a Louisiana hospital for observation for the observation.
From a DPS news release:
At approximately 11:30a.m., the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Troopers responded to a report of a wrong-way driver on Interstate 10 in Orange County.
The preliminary investigation indicates that an elderly man driving a Ford pickup truck left the scene of a crash being investigated by another law enforcement agency, near the intersection of Interstate 10 and SH 62. The elderly driver traveled up the exit ramp and drove eastbound in the westbound traffic lanes. The elderly driver sideswiped several vehicles and continued driving the wrong-way on the Interstate. An 18-wheeler driver swerved to miss the wrong-way driver and struck a passenger vehicle. The wrong-way driver came to rest after striking the trailer portion of the wrecked 18-wheeler.
There were no serious injuries reported; however, the driver of the passenger vehicle struck by the 18-wheeler went to a hospital in Louisiana for observation.
During the crash investigation, Troopers identified the wrong-way driver as 75-year-old Carlise Coy Simmons of Mauriceville and determined that he was driving while intoxicated. Simmons was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated, but was taken to a local hospital to be medically evaluated before being booked in the Orange County Jail.
This crash remains under investigation and there are no additional details available at this time.
