MIAMI (WSVN) - A fatal head-on collision in Northwest Miami-Dade took the life of a woman and sent a man to the hospital.
Surveillance video captured the moment of impact along the Palmetto Expressway near Northwest 47th Avenue at around 2:30 a.m., Monday. The footage showed an explosion that resulted from the crash.
Authorities have identified the deceased woman as 28-year-old Amelia Costa Thompson.
According to Florida Highway Patrol, Thompson was in a Mazda hatchback and was traveling westbound in the eastbound lanes of the expressway when her vehicle collided with a Dodge pickup truck.
Thompson was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Mazda was towed from the scene with Thompson’s body still inside.
The pickup truck rolled over as a result of the impact.
The driver of the pickup truck has been identified as 23-year-old Joshua Harrigan who, officials said, was headed home after work.
FHP said Harrigan was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital Ryder Trauma Center with injuries that were not life-threatening.
7News spoke with family members outside the hospital on Monday.
“He just told me the car hit the truck three times,” said Harrigan’s cousin.
The cousin said he had seen the victim minutes before the class when he helped him with a flat tire.
Harrigan’s cousin said he learned of the crash when he got home.
“His sister told me he had gotten into an accident,” he said. “I didn’t really believe her. I was like, ‘Are you sure?’ And she said, ‘Yeah,’ so I went to go check, and I saw the wreckage.”
Family members said Harrigan suffered a fractured knee and a broken leg, as well as cuts and bruises. They said he has undergone surgery.
“He told me she was coming on the wrong side of the road,” said a relative. “People were moving, trying to avoid her and she just hit him straight on.”
7News has learned Thompson worked at a Flanigan’s restaurant in Hialeah. Co-workers identified her as a bartender.
It’s unclear whether or not Thompson was working on the night before the wrong-way wreck.
While Harrigan’s family said they can not understand why someone was traveling on the wrong of the road, they said they are focused on Harrigan’s recovery.
Several parts of both vehicles were left scattered along the roadway. Crews worked to clear the debris from the scene and reopened parts of the roadway that were shut down.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
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