Suspected drunk driver charged in crash that killed alleged wrong-way driver on Gulf Fwy, HPD says

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Police arrested a suspected drunk driver after a three-vehicle crash on the Gulf Freeway.

The crash happened Monday at about 2:25 a.m., on the outbound lanes of I-45 south at Scott in the Third Ward.

The video above is from a previous story.

HPD investigators said a wrong-way driver inside a silver Toyota Corolla was headed northbound on the southbound lanes of the freeway and hit a black Nissan Altima. After the crash, the driver of the Corolla got out and was standing on the main lanes of the freeway. That's when the driver of a black Buick, 28-year-old Jose Manuel Fernandez Ortiz, hit the Corolla and the driver.

Witnesses told police that Fernandez Ortiz was seen driving at a high-speed rate moments before the crash.

The driver of the Corolla was also suspected of being intoxicated, as he was seen driving erratically, speeding, weaving in and out of traffic and tailgating people in the moments before crashing into the Nissan Altima, police said.

Officers said the driver of the Corolla was pronounced dead at the scene. Fernandez Ortiz was then taken to the hospital, where he showed signs of intoxication, police said. The passengers in the Nissan Altima are expected to be OK.

Fernandez Ortiz was charged with driving while intoxicated, which police said is his second offense.