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PARKERSBURG - An Ohio man died after a single-vehicle accident that closed the northbound lanes of Interstate 77 near the Emerson Avenue exit to Parkersburg on Sunday afternoon.
A 2025 Chevrolet Equinox traveling north on I-77 near the 180.2 mile marker ran off the left side of the road into the earth median before rolling, according to a release from the Wood County Sheriff's Office.
A passenger in the vehicle, 57-year-old Michael Todd Walker of Carrollton, Ohio, was pronounced dead at the scene.
The driver, Wendy Sue Walker, 56, also of Carrollton, was taken to WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center with what were believed to be non-life-threatening injuries, the release said.
The crash remains under investigation by the sheriff's office. No charges had been filed as of Sunday afternoon.
Also responding to the scene were the Waverly, Williamstown and East Wood volunteer fire departments, the Wood County Coroner's Office, WVU Medicine Camden Clark Ambulance Service and Pifer's Towing.
Another accident happened earlier in the day in the same area.
According to the same post from the sheriff's office, around 8:52 a.m., a 2024 Subaru Legacy operated by 27-year-old Natalie Elizabeth Bunner of Parkersburg was traveling south on I-77 near the 179 mile marker when her vehicle struck the rear of a Stuart Oil commercial vehicle, operated by 45-year-old Matthew Hellinger of Parkersburg.
Bunner was taken from the scene by ambulance to Camden Clark for injuries believed to be non-life-threatening. Hellinger was not injured in the crash.
The southbound lanes of I-77 were temporarily closed at the 179-mile marker near Emerson Avenue while emergency personnel responded to the scene and the vehicles were removed.
The Waverly and Williamstown fire departments responded, along with Camden Clark Ambulance and Pifer's, the post said.
That crash also remains under investigation.