The southbound lanes of I-75 near Valdosta have reopened following a fiery early morning wreck that left four people dead.
The wreck happened before 2:30 a.m. on I-75 southbound near mile marker 16, according to Bryan Gunter, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.
Lowndes County Coroner Bill Watson said a Penske rental truck apparently collided with one vehicle before coming to rest on top of a second vehicle.
A witness was able to pull the driver of the second vehicle out of the wreckage, but when she went back to pull a passenger from the car, she noticed fire coming from under the vehicle, Watson said.
Moments later, that vehicle burst into flames, Watson said.
Three passengers inside were burned beyond recognition, he said. The driver pulled from that vehicle also died.
The bodies of all four people were sent to the state crime lab in Atlanta for autopsies and identification, he said.
Watson, who had been at the scene most of the morning, said the fire was so intense he couldn't even tell the make and model of the vehicle that burned.
The drivers of the Penske truck and the first car that was hit by the truck were not seriously injured, according to Watson.
All southbound lanes of I-75 were shut down until about 7:30 a.m. Traffic was diverted from the interstate at Exit 18 in Valdosta while officials investigated the crash and cleared the wreckage.
The wreck happened just hours before the beginning of the official Fourth of July holiday travel period.
The Georgia State Patrol predicts that 22 people will be killed in wrecks over the 78-hour period that begins at 6 p.m. Thursday.
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