Wrong-way crash on I-69 in Graves County claims three lives

A wrong-way crash claimed three lives Saturday night along I-69 in Graves County.

At approximately 7:45 p.m., dispatchers began to get calls about a driver traveling north in the southbound lanes. Soon after the calls began reporting a head-on collision. The Graves County Sheriff's Office said that a crash occurred between exit 27 and the 26-mile marker on the southbound side. 

Investigators believe that 68-year-old Shirley Ballard of Mayfield got on the wrong ramp and entered the interstate heading the wrong way. A little over a mile up the road, Ballard's vehicle stuck head-on a vehicle driven by 21-year-old Colten Blankenship of Vienna, Illinois. The Graves County Coroner pronounced him dead at the scene. 

Blankenship's passengers were taken to hospitals by ambulance and helicopter. one, 18-year-old Alexander McLean of Eddyville died at Jackson Purchase Medical Center. The other, 22-year-old Daniel Guasp of Nortonville was flown to Vanderbilt in Nashville where he was pronounced dead. 

Ballard was taken to a hospital in Memphis, and according to the Graves County Sheriff is listed in critical condition at last check.

The crash remains under investigation.