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Northbound I-75 lanes reopened in Charlotte Co.

Posted at 6:40 AM, May 06, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-06 08:05:43-04

UPDATE (7:30 AM) -- FHP says all lanes of northbound I-75 are open again after a fatal crash early this morning.

The fatal crash scene at Saint Paul Drive in Port Charlotte has also been cleared and reopened as well.

Gunnery Road remains closed in Lehigh Acres after a crash with injuries there.

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UPDATE (6:50 AM) -- FHP now says one lane remains blocked on I-75 northbound in Punta Gorda.  Heavy backups remain in the area, according to Charlotte County Fire & EMS.

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CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. -- All northbound lanes of Interstate 75 are shut down in Punta Gorda after a deadly crash early Friday morning.

In fact, two deadly crashes happened within an hour of each other this morning in Charlotte County.

One of those crashes is in Punta Gorda on I-75 northbound after the Jones Loop Road exit, near mile marker 164.  That's the one that has the interstate closed. The crash happened just after 2:30 AM, and Florida Highway Patrol says a 67-year-old Port Charlotte woman didn't realize a dump truck ahead of her in the same lane was moving slower and crashed into it from behind.

We know one person died in the crash.

The other fatal crash happened just before 2 AM on Saint Paul Drive in Port Charlotte, near Ingraham Boulevard.  There is roadblock reported on Saint Paul Drive as of 6:30 AM.

And if that weren't enough for troopers on a busy Friday morning, there is also complete roadblock reported on Gunnery Road in Lehigh Acres at Leonard Boulevard, due to a crash with injuries.