A Louisville Metro Police officer who was injured in a head-on collision on the Gene Snyder Freeway on Monday remains hospitalized in serious but stable condition yesterday , police said.
Detective Robert Banta was driving in the eastbound lanes when he collided with a car that crossed the median from the westbound lanes, said Officer Phil Russell, a police spokesman.
Russell said Rachel Borrelli, 33, lost control of her vehicle about 4:45 p.m. Monday before hitting Banta, who was returning from SWAT training in Fort Knox. "She states that a car cut in front of her, she swerved to get out of the way and lost control," Russell said.
He said no charges were likely to be filed against Borrelli, who was taken by helicopter to University Hospital after the wreck. Borrelli was listed in fair condition yesterday.
Banta has worked for Louisville Metro Police since 1998, Russell said.
The eastbound lanes of the freeway were closed for nearly three hours after the crash, which occurred during rush hour.
There are no cable barriers in the median along the stretch of highway near Stonestreet Road where the collision occurred. The state began installing the barriers along the freeway east of Interstate 65 after several fatal crossover wrecks in recent years.
Andrea Clifford, a spokeswoman for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, said her agency is studying the area where the crash occurred and several others across the state to determine where the next stage of the barrier installation project will be implemented.
"I don't have any timeline for that location," she said.
Cable barriers, which consist of four woven steel cables, absorb the force of a collision laterally while preventing vehicles from crossing into the opposing traffic lanes.