Remains of the van driven by Joseph Vardeman of Corbin, who died in a head on crash on I-75 near Richmond Friday. Photo courtesy of WLEX 18.
A Corbin man is dead following a head-on collision Friday morning near Richmond, Ky.
Joseph Vardeman, 38, of Corbin, Ky., was traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of Interstate 75 when his van hit an oncoming vehicle head on.
Authorities in Richmond, Ky., received several calls from nearby motorists shortly before 4 a.m. Friday reporting a vehicle traveling the wrong way in the I-75 southbound lanes near mile marker 83, said Jimmy Cornelison, Madison County’s Coroner.
The head-on collision was reported shortly after, Cornelison said. The accident backed up traffic for about four hours.
Cornelison said it’s not clear why the van was traveling in the wrong lanes, but the only conceivable explanation at this point is that Vardeman exited the entrance ramp at Duncannon Lane between Richmond and Berea.
Cornelison said he did not smell alcohol and saw no evidence of alcohol in the van, but a formal autopsy has been preformed.
Vardeman owned an interior and exterior painting and wallpapering business located in London, Ky.
