A tire blowout on a car entering Interstate 75 in Sarasota County led to a serious crash Thursday morning that overturned a semi-truck and sent both drivers to the hospital, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The crash happened around 6:53 a.m. Thursday near Mile Marker 205 at the Clark Road interchange on southbound I-75.
Investigators said a 27-year-old Sarasota man driving a 2006 Ford sedan was traveling southbound on the Interstate 75 entrance ramp from Clark Road when the vehicle experienced a tire blowout.
Troopers said the sedan entered the path of a southbound 2000 Peterbilt semi-truck with a trailer traveling in the right lane of I-75.
The semi driver, a 48-year-old man from Hialeah, attempted to avoid the crash by moving into the center lane but was unable to avoid impact.
The front of the semi struck the left side of the sedan, causing the truck to rotate counterclockwise and overturn in the grassy median.
Both drivers were transported to Sarasota Memorial Hospital with serious injuries, authorities said.
No additional information about the extent of the injuries was immediately available Thursday.
The Florida Highway Patrol continues to investigate the crash.
Florida traffic crash statistics in 2026
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reports there were 155,627 crashes in Florida through June 13, 2026, including 1,097 fatalities.
The department’s Florida Crash Dashboard also reported 96,358 injuries, 964 fatal crashes and 64,375 injury crashes statewide during the same period.
Wade Tatangelo is the executive editor of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and Florida dining and entertainment editor for the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Facebook, Instagram, and X. He can be reached by email at wade.tatangelo@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Tire blowout causes serious I-75 crash in Sarasota County
Reporting by Wade Tatangelo, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Wade Tatangelo, Sarasota Herald-Tribune | USA TODAY Network
