JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — An 18-year-old woman is dead after a crash in Downtown Jacksonville Wednesday morning, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Around 11:17 a.m., an SUV was traveling westbound on the Arlington Expressway near North Liberty Street coming off the Mathews Bridge, an FHP crash report states.
For an unknown reason, the 28-year-old woman driving the vehicle lost control and crashed into a raised concrete barrier wall. The vehicle overturned multiple times as it continued down the ramp, FHP said.
The 18-year-old passenger was ejected from the SUV and taken to UF Health Jacksonville where she was pronounced dead. According to the crash report, she was not wearing a seatbelt.
The 28-year-old driver is in serious condition, FHP said. The report states she was not wearing a seatbelt.
Three children, a 1-year-old, 3-year-old and 4-year-old, were inside the vehicle at the time of the crash. All suffered minor injuries.
The 1-year-old was wearing a child restraint, according to the report, but it is unknown if the two other children were.
"We do encourage to always wear your seatbelt. It doesn't matter the length of your travels, it doesn't matter the speed you'll be going or even where you're seated in the car, if the vehicle is in motion please wear your seatbelt," said Florida Highway Patrol Sergent Dylan Bryan.
Investigators want to remind drivers that as they come off the Mathews Bridge to slow down as they head into downtown.
"You're coming off of a fairly steep downgrade, you're coming off the bridge. Typically vehicles will start to travel a little bit faster if you're not paying attention and that's just physics. You're going downhill so you tend to go a little bit quicker. So we really want to encourage the public to be cognizant of your speed coming off of that bridge," said Bryan.