11-03-2025
Police: Man injured after hitting pedestrian on I-81
A 28-year-old East Stroudsburg man and a 48-year-old truck driver from Lehighton suffered serious injuries in a crash on Interstate 81 Monday morning, state police said.
The crash occurred along the southbound lanes at mile marker 131 near Mahanoy City when the driver of a Freightliner, Carson W. Garson of Lehighton, was standing in the middle of the road checking on people involved in an earlier crash.
Police said another motorist, Thomas T. Buist, of Gananoque, Ontario, slowed down to avoid road debris as he approached the scene.
However, a motorist behind him, Jonathan T. Parker of East Stroudsburg, failed to slow down in his Kia Spectra, striking Garson, according to police.
After hitting the pedestrian, Parker continued south on I-81, but he was involved in a second collision when his car hit the back of Buist's Ford F-150 XLT, police said.
Parker and Garson suffered suspected serious injuries, according to police. Parker was transported by the Ryan Twp. Emergency and Rescue Squad, while Garson was transported by the Frackville Community Ambulance Association, police said. Buist did not report any injuries.
Both Parker's and Buist's vehicles sustained disabling damage and were towed from the scene.
Police said the first crash occurred around 6 a.m. when Garson's Freightliner truck was hit from behind by a Ford F-150 XLT driven by Jared A. Longenecker, of Palmyra, who had one passenger.
No one was injured in that crash, according to police.
