2 killed in Monday morning I-10 crash

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, February 6, 2013

By Kimberly Hopson
L’Observateur

LAPLACE – A fatal crash Monday morning created traffic jams for miles on westbound Interstate 10 over the Bonnet Carre Spillway as the roadway was closed while Louisiana State Police dealt with the accident.
Louisiana State Police Troop B responded to the fatal crash in St. Charles Parish that claimed the lives of two individuals shortly after 5:30 a.m.
A preliminary investigation revealed that a 2012 Nissan Altima was stopped on the shoulder of I-10 west at mile marker 214.6 for unknown reasons. A 2002 Mercedes C230, driven by Nechole Thomas of Houston, was speeding on the right shoulder of I-10 west approaching mile marker 214.  The Mercedes struck the rear of the Altima and both vehicles caught fire. After the fire was extinguished, two occupants were discovered in the Altima and pronounced dead on the scene. Thomas was able to escape from the Mercedes and incurred only minor injuries.
As of press time, the identities of the driver and passenger of the Altima have not yet been determined because of the extent of injuries. Autopsies are pending.
Impairment is suspected for Thomas, and toxicology tests are pending at the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab. Thomas was arrested and charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, DWI, driving with a suspended license and reckless operation.
She was booked into the St. Charles Parish Correctional Center. Thomas’s bond totals $20,000 for the misdemeanor charges.
Bond information was not yet available for the vehicular homicide charge.