A total of 47 traffic incidents, including a fatality collision on Interstate 35, took place on Kyle-area roads from July 24 to July 29, causing Kyle Police to urge caution on the roadway.
One of the more severe accidents took place in the overnight hours July 29 when one person was killed in a collision involving an 18-wheeler on I-35.
Jennifer Ortiz, 30, of Austin, was identified as the victim in the fatality wreck, which occurred after midnight on the northbound side of I-35 near the 213-mile marker.
Jeff Barnett, Kyle Police Department chief, said a black Kia Soul, operated by Ortiz, was traveling on I-35 when it collided with a retention wall. The vehicle spun and came to a stop in the middle of I-35.
Barnett said an 18-wheeler, operated by Wayne Tijerina, 29, of Compton, collided into the Soul. It’s believed the driver was unable to see the Soul in the roadway as the car’s lights were rendered inoperable in the collision, Barnett said.
Hays County Pct. 2 Justice of the Peace Beth Smith pronounced Ortiz dead at the scene.
Barnett said alcohol is not believed to be a factor. However, a toxicology report will be conducted during an ordered autopsy on Ortiz.
Authorities also didn’t see signs of intoxication or impairment on Tijerina, but, per procedure, a blood specimen was collected for further analysis.
Roughly a day earlier, Kyle emergency officials extricated a man who was pinned in his vehicle following a rollover accident on I-35.
Authorities were dispatched to the 24000 block of southbound I-35 around 11:44 p.m. July 27 for the wreck, which involved a 2004 black GMC Sierra pickup driven by Alcadio Sanchez, 54, of San Marcos.
Barnett said the truck was traveling southbound when it collided into a crash cushion of a temporary concrete barrier. The truck traveled on the barrier, then returned to the roadway before rotating and rolling over.
The driver, later identified as Sanchez, was extricated roughly 15 minutes after emergency crews arrived, Barnett said. Sanchez was airlifted by STARFlight to an Austin-area hospital in serious condition.
Meanwhile, an investigation continues into a July 29 incident where a vehicle plowed into the side of a building on Kyle Crossing.
Barnett said Kyle Police was dispatched around 10 p.m. July 29 for a reported hit-and-run near the Chase Bank in the H-E-B Kyle Parking lot. The incident involved a black 2008 Ford Mustang and a Lexus IS 250, he said.
While authorities responded to the hit-and-run, Barnett said the Mustang drove off and continued north on Kyle Crossing when it approached a right-hand curve.
The Mustang continued through the curve and on to property in the 3600 block of Kyle Crossing. The vehicle continued driving through the property, where it eventually slammed into the southern side of a building that housed three businesses. No one was in the structure when the incident occurred.
Barnett said the driver of the vehicle fled the scene on foot. The registered owner of the Mustang told police the identity of the person to whom she had loaned the car.
The identity of the driver is unknown at this time, pending investigation into the accident.
