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Driver Dies After Truck Rolls Down I-75 Embankment

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By RAY REYES | The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 22, 2008

TAMPA - A truck that had pulled over to the side of Interstate 75 in Manatee County today rolled down an embankment and struck a concrete pillar, killing the driver, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Kent Klepinger, 73, of Stoughton, Wis., was taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital, where he died from his injuries, Trooper Lona Mitchell wrote in a news release. A passenger, Barbara Klepinger, also 73, was not hurt.

According to the highway patrol, this is what happened about 3 p.m.:

Kent Klepinger was driving north on I-75 when he began to feel ill. Klepinger pulled the Ford F450 truck he was driving into an emergency lane on the east side of the interstate and stopped.

Klepinger became unconscious, but the truck was still in gear. It rolled down an embankment and collided with a concrete pillar that supports the I-275 overpass.

Kent and Barbara Klepinger were both wearing seat belts, the highway patrol said.

Reporter Ray Reyes can be reached at (813) 259-7920 or rreyes@tampatrib.com.

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