Big rig driver killed in Wythe County crash

WYTHE COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) - A Pennsylvania driver has been identified as the man killed in a crash Thursday in Wythe County.

Isaac J. Petersheim, 28 of Lancaster, died at the scene of the crash on I-81, more than a quarter-mile south of Route 52. He was not wearing a seatbelt, according to Virginia State Police.

Police were called to the crash at 12:59 a.m. January 19, 2023. They say Petersheim was driving a Peterbilt tractor-trailer north on I-81, ran off the right side of the road and hit a Volvo tractor-trailer that was parked on the shoulder. The Peterbilt went off the road and overturned over the guardrail.

The driver of the Volvo, Edward N. Opoku, 45 of Hammond, Ind., was not hurt in the crash, but was charged with improper stopping on a highway.