NORTH FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Police are trying to determine how a tire came off a pickup truck and flew into oncoming traffic, killing another driver.
Julieanna Shedrawy died when the tire slammed into her car on Georgia 400 Thursday morning.
Channel 2 Action News spoke to the driver of the truck, who said he’s feeling bad about the tragic accident.
"I'm just feeling bad because of the family,” Jorge Herrara said.
Herrara told us he was driving to work around 8 a.m. on Georgia 400 when a tire on his pickup truck inexplicably came off.
Sandy Springs police said that tire flew across the median and into the path of the 49-year-old Alpharetta victim.
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"I am sorry,” Herrara said. “I'm just on my way to my job. I'm not using drugs, I'm not drunk. I'm not driving fast, just normal to try to get to my job."
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Herrara said he'd had no issues with that tire before this happened.
“I drove this truck to North Carolina on Saturday,” Herrara said. “I don't have weight, I don't have equipment, the truck is really empty and I don't think this is all gonna cause this big problem."
The crash shut down several lanes of 400 during the morning rush as police investigated.
"I'm here in Georgia for 28 years and I've never had an accident,” Herrara said.
Police said it was a mechanical failure that caused the tire to come off that car. They said there are no charges against Herrara planned at this point.
Channel 2's Justin Wilfon spoke to neighbors and friends of Shedrawy.
“We’ll be there as a community to support her and the family,” neighbor Darrell Thompson told Wilfon.
Thompson said the tight-knit neighborhood has been left in shock over the incident.
“You wish that there was some way to reverse it, but unfortunately you know even in some tragic circumstances, perhaps God’s will is being done,” Thompson told Wilfon.
Friends remember Shedrawy as someone who was full of life. She worked in restaurant sales, just down the street from where she lived.
“We’re obviously all just in shock. No words to describe,” friend Brenda George said. “She would walk in and if you were having a bad day, the smile was this wide. And you would instantly feel good because she would say it’s OK.”
Shedrawy leaves behind a husband and two daughters.