Colorado State Patrol says driver reversing into traffic caused fatal crash on I-25

The Colorado State Patrol has released new details on a fatal crash that shut down I-25 northbound in Douglas County for several hours on Friday.

The crash involved a white Audi Q5, a blue Toyota Highlander and a gray Chevy Equinox, which collided in the northbound lanes of I-25 near the Happy Canyon Road exit around 1:23 p.m.

Investigators say the Equinox was on the right northbound shoulder of the road and drifted into the right lane while backing up. That caused the Audi, driving in the right lane, to crash into the back of the vehicle. A Highlander was also traveling north in the right-hand lane and crashed into the Audi.

The collision sent the Equinox off the shoulder of the road, while the other two vehicles came to a stop on the interstate, blocking the lanes of travel.

The 31-year-old man from Aurora who was driving the Equinox was killed in the crash. CSP says the Audi was driven by a 46-year-old woman from Parker, who suffered serious injuries in the crash and was taken to an area hospital. The Highlander driver, a 58-year-old woman from Castle Pines, suffered moderate injuries and was also taken to a hospital for treatment.

I-25 northbound was shut down for nearly four hours while authorities investigated and cleared the scene. It reopened around 5:12 p.m.

CSP says the crash is still under investigation. They asked anyone who witnessed the crash and has not spoken to investigators to call their dispatch line at (303) 239-4501 and reference case VC260144.