Two fatal crashes within hours of each other Sunday caused both interstates to completely shut down to allow police to investigate.
On Sunday morning, a woman driving an SUV died after being ejected from her vehicle while trying to “aggressively” pass another vehicle in the fast lane along southbound Interstate 25 at Comanche.
The woman’s SUV collided with the vehicle in front of her, causing her SUV to flip at least once. The woman, whose name was not released by police Sunday, was pronounced dead at the scene, Albuquerque police said. That crash caused Interstate 25 to close for several hours.
And Sunday afternoon, a pedestrian was struck and killed by a semi-truck on eastbound Interstate 40 at Tramway, shutting all lanes until 9 p.m.
The interstate remained closed as deputies “work(ed) to determine why this individual was on the freeway,” sheriff’s office spokesman Sgt. Aaron Williamson said in an email.
The driver of the truck is not facing any charges. The victim’s identity has not been released.
Sheriff’s deputies, Albuquerque police and New Mexico State Police were called in to help reroute traffic.
At one point, vehicles were being instructed to turn around on an onramp to exit the highway.
