Around 3:20pm Thursday, a van traveling eastbound rear-ended an 18-wheeler that had slowed due to brake failure. A male victim from the van was transported to Ben Taub General Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Soon after, authorities closed three main lanes and one shoulder, and traffic quickly had backed up to Shepherd.
Then an hour later, crews were forced to shut down the entire highway to clean up the aftermath. All lanes were shut down for five and a half hours, turning the afternoon commute into a nightmare for commuters in the area.
The scene finally was cleared around 9:45pm.
The 24-year-old victim's identity has not been released. The 18-wheeler driver was not injured. ___________________________________________________________
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