A motorcycle ran into the back of a car when traffic stopped abruptly on the interstate just south of the Kelley Highway exit, according to Arkansas State Police troopers. The biker then ran into a barrier wall.
The biker, identified as 55-year-old Melvin Sullivan, of Van Buren, was hospitalized with a broken arm and head injury.
As traffic came to a stop for the first wreck, a car hit a pickup truck pushing it into another pickup.
Two people involved in that accident were taken to the hospital where they were treated and released.
Trooper Callie Dacus says these wrecks, in a busy construction zone, could have easily been avoided.
“Especially in the construction zone, get off the phone, no texting,” she said. “Pay attention, make sure you have enough distance, that's the biggest thing you go hundreds of feet per second whenever you're driving.”
The south bound lane of I-540 coming into Fort Smith was shut down for a brief time until the wreckage could be cleared.