Tractor-trailer tire kills driver on I-95

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – A 27-year-old man was killed late Friday afternoon when the wheel of a tractor-trailer detached, flew through the air and struck the victim's car on Interstate 95 in St. Johns County, according the the Florida Highway Patrol.

Michael Harper of Ponte Vedra was driving northbound on I-95 with a passenger, 23-year-old Kody Lieberman, in his Mitsubishi Lancer.

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The tractor-trailer, driven by 43-year-old Michael Hunter of Daytona Beach, was traveling southbound on I-95 when the right wheel assembly separated from its rear axle. The wheel assembly traveled southeast along the interstate, striking the concrete barrier and becoming airborne.

When the wheel assembly hit Harper's car, it broke through the windshield and hit Harper. Lieberman was able to move the car off the highway.

Harper was taken to Flagler Hospital, where he died.