(Updated at 6:30 p.m. on 8/13/2023) An 85-year-old man died Friday (Aug. 11) after getting seriously injured in a three-vehicle crash on Arlington Blvd (Route 50) in Merrifield.
Paul Hession, a resident of the Churchill neighborhood in the McLean area, was a passenger in a 2015 Toyota Camry that was turning left from westbound Arlington Blvd to Stonehurst Drive around 11:44 a.m. on Friday, the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release on Saturday (Aug. 12).
“The driver of a second vehicle, a 2010 Toyota Prius, traveling eastbound on Arlington Boulevard, struck the Camry in the intersection,” police said. “After the initial collision, the Camry struck a third car, a 2023 Mercedes-Benz Eqs300, that was stopped at the intersection.”
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department units were dispatched to the scene of the crash around 11:58 a.m., according to scanner traffic on Open MHz. At least one person had to be extricated from their vehicle.
Hession was taken to an area hospital, where he died. The drivers of all three vehicles were also hospitalized with injuries not considered life-threatening.
Virginia Department of Transportation traffic cameras showed vehicle backups on Route 50 approaching Pickett Road, where police directed traffic at the Fairfax City border.
The crash occurred as other police and fire units were busy investigating a major two-vehicle crash on Route 50 at I-66 near Fair Oaks Mall. Route 50 was fully closed there, and both drivers were initially considered to be in life-threatening condition, the FCPD said.
#FCPD is investigating a three vehicle crash in Merrifield, on eastbound Arlington Blvd near Stonehurst Dr. Eastbound Arlington Blvd is closed while the investigation continues. One adult man take to the hospital in life threatening condition. Please use an alternate route. pic.twitter.com/DmeXcdwLsz
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) August 11, 2023