Zephyrhills woman dies in fiery Hernando County truck crash

A Zephyrhills woman died after her Volkswagen Jetta crossed the center line on Treiman Boulevard and slammed into a northbound tractor-trailer in Ridge Manor, turning the predawn crash into a fiery scene on one of eastern Hernando County’s main corridors.

The Florida Highway Patrol said the wreck happened at about 2 a.m. May 22, 2026, just north of Belt Drive on Treiman Boulevard, which is U.S. 301. Troopers said the 27-year-old woman from Zephyrhills was traveling southbound when her car entered the northbound lane and struck the truck head-on.

The impact ignited the tractor-trailer, and the fire burned intensely after the collision. A 47-year-old Georgia man was driving the semi, and a 52-year-old Georgia woman was riding as a passenger. Emergency crews took all three people to area hospitals.

The Zephyrhills woman later died from her injuries. The status of the Georgia driver and passenger was not included in the available details.

The crash adds another deadly mark to a stretch of roadway that Hernando County drivers know well. Treiman Boulevard carries U.S. 301 through eastern Hernando County, and the Florida Department of Transportation says a widening project is already underway on the corridor from State Road 50 to just south of U.S. 98. Construction began July 22, 2024, and is expected to finish in fall 2028.

State officials say Florida crash reports can take up to 10 days to become available, and the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles handles statewide crash data collection and dissemination. That means additional official details about the Ridge Manor wreck could still emerge as the report is completed and added to the state’s safety records.

For Hernando County residents, the crash is another reminder of how quickly a routine stretch of U.S. 301 can turn deadly when traffic, speed and a center-line crossing meet in the dark. The state’s long-running widening project is intended to reshape the corridor, but the latest death shows the road remains unforgiving for drivers heading through Ridge Manor in the early morning hours.