Tesla driver traveling at ‘excessive speed’ before fatal I-40 crash in Durham: warrant

DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) – The driver of a Tesla was traveling at an “excessive speed” in April when he plowed into the back of another vehicle before he crashed down to Interstate-40, court documents say.

The wreck was reported just before 4:15 p.m. on April along eastbound I-40 at the U.S. 15/501 overpass, which is also Durham Chapel Hill Boulevard, according to a news release from Durham police.

Zack A. Wojenski, 45, of Apex, was driving east on 15-501 in a 2017 Tesla Model S when he slammed into the back of a 2012 Camry, documents show.

The force of the collision crushed the Camry to “2/3 of its original depth,” court documents say.

The Tesla then continued to move another 500 feet – hitting a guardrail, several roadway signs, and then a utility pole before the vehicle went airborne, flipped, and landed on its wheels in the middle of I-40, documents say.

The driver of the Camry said he had just changed lanes before a stoplight and started to roll from a stop when his car was hit from behind, the document says.

Wojenski died at the scene, a news release from Durham police said.

The driver of the Camry was taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation. The highway reopened around four hours after the collision.

No cars were hit on I-40, police said.

No charges have been filed in the crash, which is still under investigation.

The speed limit on that stretch of 15-501 is 35 mph, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.