Details Emerge In Howard Frankland Bridge Pileup

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A 62-year-old St. Petersburg man is in serious condition at Tampa General Hospital after a blowout in his Hyundai Sonata caused a multi-vehicle crash on the Howard Frankland Bridge Monday morning.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Ivan Hall was traveling northbound on Interstate 275 on the right emergency shoulder approaching the bridge around 8:33 a.m. Hall’s left front tire blew out, the patrol said, and he lost control of his car. The Hyundai struck a vehicle driven by Consuelo Santiago Dean, 51, of St. Petersburg, propelling her vehicle forward into the rear of a Honda Civic driven by Patrick Tinney, 47, of St. Petersburg.

At that point, Hall’s Hyundai struck a concrete barrier wall and then crashed into a fourth vehicle, a semi driven by Maria Villalobo, 52, of Brandon. After striking the semi, the Hyundai continued forward and hit the rear end of a Dodge Avenger driven by Lisa Dye, 50, of Toledo, Ohio, the report said.

The Dodge was propelled counter-clockwise and struck the rear of a Honda CRV driven by Deborah Douglas, 56, of St. Petersburg. The Dodge continued to spin and ultimately struck a concrete barrier wall, the patrol said.

Meanwhile, Hall’s vehicle, the patrol report said, continued north and sideswiped a Dodge SXT driven by Carmen Hayes-Hernandez, 58, of Tampa. The Hyundai ended up striking three more vehicles before coming to rest in the inside center lane.

Hall suffered serious injuries. The driver of the 10th vehicle, Paul Ernest Tevis Jr., 43, of Seminole also suffered minor injuries. The patrol reported no other injuries.

The report did note that Hall’s vehicle was “observed traveling at a high rate of speed, completing multiple lane changes to include utilizing both emergency shoulders prior to the tire blow out, during which time another vehicle sustained minor damage to its windshield from debris.”

The wreck closed the northbound lanes of the Howard Frankland Bridge for several hours Monday morning. Charges are pending, the patrol said. 

Photo courtesy of the Florida Highway Patrol

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