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Ruskin Man Dies in Crash on U.S. 41

Police Lights | Florida | TB Reporter

He was not wearing a seat belt, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY – A Ruskin man died this morning (April 24) when he was partially thrown from the pickup truck in which he was riding when it overturned during a traffic crash, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Ernesto Lopez Zaragoza, 66, of Ruskin died at the scene. He was not wearing a seat belt.

One of the drivers in the three-vehicle crash, Derrick Lashun Alston, 45, of Apollo Beach, was taken to St. Joseph’s South Hospital with minor injuries. Another driver, Danielle Diana Hall, 27, of Gibsonton, suffered minor injuries but was not taken to a hospital. The third driver, Roberto Ortega Garcia, 28, of Ruskin, was not injured.

The crash happened about 7:15 a.m. at the intersection of U.S. 41 and Spindle Shell Way in Hillsborough County. Trooper said Hall was driving a 2012 Hyundai Elantra south on U.S. 41. Hall turned left into the path of a northbound 1995 Chevrolet Silverado driven by Garcia. The two vehicles collided.

After the impact, the Hyundai came to rest on the right shoulder of U.S. 41. The Chevy rotated and hit a 2009 Honda Pilot driven by Alston, which was stopped facing west on Spindle Shell Way. When the Chevy hit the Honda, the pickup overturned, troopers said. Mr. Zaragoza was partially thrown out of the vehicle and was killed. The driver and other two passengers in the Chevy, who were wearing seat belts, were not injured.

Florida Highway Patrol | Ernesto Lopez Zaragoza| Fatal Crash | Traffic Crash | U.S. 41 Crash | Tampabay News

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