Two die in wreck on I-430 bridge

Little Rock newscaster, 60, hit head-on by wrong-way driver, 28

Two people died in a fiery head-on collision Wednesday morning on the Interstate 430 bridge over the Arkansas River.

Gary DiGiuseppe, 60, was driving a 2005 Ford south over the bridge about 3:49 a.m. when a 1998 Buick traveling in the wrong direction crashed into his vehicle headon, according to Arkansas State Police. The Buick then caught fire.

DiGiuseppe and the Buick driver, Felecia Stevenson, 28, of Little Rock, were both pronounced dead at the scene.

DiGiuseppe of Maumelle was driving to work at KARN Newsradio 102.9 in Little Rock when the crash occurred, the radio station said in a statement. He was a morning newscaster on First News with Kevin Miller and produced daily newscasts for the Arkansas Radio Network for years.

The station said Wednesday it was “mourning the loss of a colleague.”

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Gary DiGiuseppe’s wife, Mary, and the rest of his family as we all face the realization of the shocking loss of our co-worker,” the statement reads.

In addition to news radio, DiGiuseppe spent decades reporting on agriculture for news and trade publications across the country. He was a part-time news clerk at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for about five months ending Feb. 29.

Arkansas State Police spokesman Bill Sadler said the agency’s Criminal Investigations and Highway Patrol divisions are investigating the crash. Sadler said the former division is working to establish a timeline of events before the crash, particularly for Stevenson.

“Where had this person been? When was the last time she was seen? Who was with her? So this is what the timeline will establish,” Sadler said.

Stevenson had posted on her Facebook page several times this month about working overnight shifts at Popeye’s Chicken in Little Rock, often clocking out in the early morning hours. Some shifts lasted 12 hours or longer, she wrote. Stevenson sometimes posted photos of her time sheets to show the hours she’d worked.

Stevenson also wrote on Facebook she had been seeking a second job. Court filings show she had three children, ages 7, 6 and 5, and that she was their only living biological parent.

Sadler said Stevenson’s and DiGiuseppe’s bodies had been taken to the state Crime Laboratory for autopsy.

“Pursuant to Arkansas law, there are tests on the bodies for both drivers to determine who may have been intoxicated or impaired by alcohol or drugs,” Sadler said. “That test has not been completed.”

A witness to the crash posted video online showing the vehicles crumpled together against the center barrier of the Interstate 430 bridge as firefighters doused flames about 10 feet high with water. Southbound and northbound lanes were closed to traffic for nearly two hours. Emergency personnel cleared the scene about 5:36 a.m., according to state police.

Conditions were clear and dry when the crash occurred, state police reported.

Sadler said an investigation of the crash could take weeks.

“Needless to say, there’s a lot of work to be done,” he said.