FHP: Truck driver falls asleep at the wheel causing I-75 crash

NAPLES, Fla.- Interstate 75 was closed for hours early Tuesday morning after a semi-truck driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed near mile marker 105, Florida Highway Patrol said.

Around 2 a.m., troopers say Jonathan Simon, 51, of Tampa was driving southbound in the outside lane when he fell asleep and drifted off the roadway, striking a guard rail. After hitting a concrete barricade, troopers say Simon over-corrected and crossed both southbound lanes striking another concrete barricade in the median.

The truck caught fire while blocking both southbound lanes of I-75 near the Golden Gate Parkway exit, FHP said.

The driver was transported to Naples Community Hospital with serious injuries.

Southbound lanes of I-75 were reopened around 8:30 a.m.

Simon is facing charges for careless driving, FHP said.