Route 11 backed up tonight for miles after crash

CANFIELD

The driver of a vehicle southbound on state Route 11 near the Canfield/Austintown township line was injured when she fell asleep at the wheel, drifted off the right side of the highway and slammed into the rear of an unoccupied, disabled vehicle late Tuesday afternoon.

Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper David Brown said the driver, Jennifer Pyatt, 38, of Girard, was taken to St. Elizabeth Health Center for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. There were no passengers in her car.

However, the crash, which occurred at 5 p.m., left both vehicles across the southbound lane, backing up traffic for two to three miles, nearly to the Route 11/Interstate 80 split. After cleaning gasoline and debris off the road, a single lane was opened about 6:10 p.m., and both lanes were cleared for traffic about 6:30 p.m., Brown said.

The trooper said Pyatt, who was wearing a seat belt, was cited for driving with a suspended license and a lane violation. The crash remains under investigation.