GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas -
A man driving the wrong way on Highway 287 caused a deadly head-on collision that caused both vehicles to burst into flames.
The accident happened about 1 a.m. in the southern tip of the Grand Prairie city limits in Ellis County on Highway 287 at Lakeview Drive.
Police say 46-year-old John Layton of Mansfield was driving south in the northbound lanes of U.S. 287 when he smashed head-on into a Honda CRV driven by Alex Elizabeth Ford, 20, of Watauga.
The impact pinned both drivers inside their cars. Both died at the scene.
Investigators say Layton had turned onto Highway 287 from State Highway 360, about a mile and a half north of the crash scene.
A witness called 911 to report him as a wrong-way driver and was on the phone with dispatchers when the crash happened, according to Grand Prairie Police public information officer Lyle Gensler.
U.S. 287 was closed for hours after the accident, and reopened about 5 a.m. after lawmen cleared the scene.
So far, investigators haven't said exactly what caused the accident, but are working to determine if alcohol played a factor.
