A 69-year-old woman from Southern Pines died after she drove around barricades in WNC where I-40 was washed away by Hurricane Helene.

According to the N.C. Highway Patrol, on Saturday around 8 p.m., the woman was traveling westbound on I-40 to Exit 7, where all the travelers have to exit the interstate.

Authorities say that’s when the woman took a wrong turn and ended up going west in the lanes that were supposed to be going east on I-40. During Hurricane Helene, floodwaters washed out those lanes.

Police say it was very dark when the accident happened, and it looks like the woman never put on the brakes. The car went off the road, landed about 50 feet down in the hole, and then fell another 50 feet.

The woman was able to be taken out of the car by rescue workers who went down the hole to it. She was taken away by life flight, but she later died from her injuries.

The crash is still being looked into, and more barriers have been put up in the area because of it.

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