WILSON COUNTY, Tenn. - The driver of a semi-truck hauling potatoes that overturned on Interstate 40 east in Wilson County has been charged with DUI and reckless endangerment.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol said 55-year-old Roy Golden, of Knoxville, Tennessee, was booked at the Wilson County Sheriff's office on Friday. He was also charged with consumption of alcohol in a commercial vehicle, possession of alcohol in a commercial vehicle, and possession of schedule VI.
The crash happened around 8 p.m. Thursday at mile marker 245. The Tennessee Highway Patrol said the truck was carrying 40,000 pounds of potatoes when it overturned. The load did not spill during the crash, but bags of potatoes spilled out after the semi was righted.
The entire side of the interstate was shut down throughout the night, but the left lane re-opened around 7:30 a.m. to allow traffic that had been trapped since the crash through. Many drivers had been sleeping in the cars, and THP officials said they had to wake up some of the drivers.
The entire interstate was not cleared until just before 2 p.m.
