Wreck backs up westbound traffic on I-20

Published 1:09 pm Sunday, May 22, 2016

A Texas man escaped serious injury Sunday morning when his 18-wheeler carrying bales of cotton overturned in the westbound lane of Interstate 20 near the Indiana Avenue exit.

Vicksburg police officer Russell Darsey said Joel Rivera, 29, of Mercedes, Texas, a driver for FMC Transport, was treated at Merit Health River Region Medical Center for injuries he received in the 8:45 a.m. wreck. He said Rivera was later released.

He said Rivera told him he was traveling westbound on I-20 when the load’s weight in the trailer shifted, causing him to veer right, strike the guardrail and overturn.

The wreck backed up westbound traffic on I-20 past the U.S. 61 North exit, and police blocked off the Indiana Avenue bridge over the highway and rerouted vehicles around the wreck using the westbound Indiana Avenue exit.

About John Surratt

John Surratt is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree in general studies. He has worked as an editor, reporter and photographer for newspapers in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post staff since 2011 and covers city government. He and his wife attend St. Paul Catholic Church and he is a member of the Port City Kiwanis Club.