Interstate 40 Traffic Crash Fatality

Posted 10-30-23.

A traffic crash on Interstate 40 resulted in one fatality and multiple injuries late Saturday evening, October 28, 2023.

The crash was reported at 11:48 p.m. on Interstate 40 east near mile marker 406.2. Officers arrived to find a 2016 Nissan Versa in the center median area that had apparently rolled over.

According to Sevierville Police Department Officer Jordan Chambers as well as witness statements, the Versa was reportedly traveling east when it struck the guardrail on the left side of the road, then struck a 2003 Ram pick-up truck that was traveling in the center lane, and subsequently left the roadway and traveled into the center median.

The driver of the Versa, 21-year old Julio Bonilla of Washington, D.C., was ejected from the vehicle and died apparently from injuries sustained in the crash. The front seat passenger in the Versa, 21-year old Jose Fuentes-Blanco, was transported by Lifestar air ambulance to the University of Tennessee Medical Center with what appeared at the scene to be serious injuries. A 17-year old passenger in the Versa was transported by the Sevier County Ambulance Service to the University of Tennessee Medical Center with what appeared at the scene to be serious injuries. No one in the pick-up truck was injured.

None of the Versa occupants appeared to be wearing a seatbelt, and alcohol and marijuana were recovered at and near the Versa.

The crash remains under investigation.