Lake Wales Wrong Way Accident

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A wrong way driver on U.S. Highway 27 crashed into a semi-truck in Lake Wales, Florida. The driver, Randal Jackson, is in critical condition at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center as of Sunday. The accident happened when Jackson attempted to head southbound in the middle lane of U.S. 27 that was intended to for northbound traffic. The semi-truck was headed northbound and attempted to avoid the accident but was unable to do so and Jackson’s Nissan Altima struck the trailer.

Florida Law Requires Driving Only On The Right Side Of The Road

Section 316.081, Florida Statutes requires all drivers to drive on the right side of the road as below:

(1) Upon all roadways of sufficient width, a vehicle shall be driven upon the right half of the roadway …

There is a list of exceptions, however, none of those apply to driving the wrong way on a divided highway such as U.S. 27. We do not know why Jackson was driving the wrong way on the roadway and we do not know why Jackson did not realize he was headed the wrong way and take immediate action to prevent an accident.