AUSTIN, Texas — The National Transportation Safety Board released updates on Sunday about the fatal collision involving at least 17 cars on Interstate 35 that happened in North Austin last week.
The deadly crash happened Thursday near Parmer and Howard lanes and resulted in the death of three adults, one child, one infant, while injuring 11 others, according to officials.
Solomun Weldekeal-Araya, 37, was charged with five counts of intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle along with other charges, according to the Austin Police Department.
On Sunday, NTSB officials stated that they were able to document the scene of the collision using an unmanned aerial system to get a full scope of the sequence of events.
The crash occurred in a temporary work zone on I-35, and there was a temporary lane closure scheduled to occur from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m.. The highway work reduced three lanes into one.
At the time of the crash, traffic had begun to back up.
“According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the truck that initiated the crash was registered for higher carrier, ZBN Transport LLC out of Dallas,” said NTSB Investigator Kenny Bragg.
NTSB Vice Chairman Alvin Brown said at the press conference that they do not speculate about the probable cause of the collision while they are on the scene. They are expected to be on the scene investigating for the next seven to 10 days.
Weldekeal-Araya, who is a truck driver, has been arrested on charges regarding the crash. The NTSB said they plan to look into the truck driver’s employment history as a commercial driver, his entire driving history — including crash history and traffic violations — and his medical history for any other factors that may have impacted his driving.